


White Lightening

by DonniesNerdett



Category: TMNT (2007), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Bay Movies)
Genre: F/M, Just writing for fun, More like a sitcom than fanfic, NSFW eventually, RaeLynnBlack
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-15
Updated: 2018-10-10
Packaged: 2019-06-11 03:08:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 29,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15306111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DonniesNerdett/pseuds/DonniesNerdett
Summary: Donatello and his brothers fall across a young lady with an accent and a past that is intertwined with theirs, and the Foot.





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> It's been over 10 years since I've picked up a pencil, hang in there it gets better! ~ Yeah... So this is ever developing, not sure where its going or how long it will take to get there, but the little moments count ;)

The brothers moved through the night, quickly and silently, leaping from building to building with ease. Their nightly Patrols of their beloved city had become fairly uneventful since the disappearance of Shredder, the leader of New York’s notorious Foot Clan had not been seen or heard from since the brothers defeated Krang in his attempt at world domination over 2 years ago. Nevertheless, Leonardo, the oldest of the brothers, insisted they continue their nightly routine so the Foot would still know their presence as New York’s vigilantes.

As they moved through the city they kept their senses alert for any disturbances, Foot Clan oriented or not. The tallest of the brothers, Donatello, suddenly skidded to a halt he thought he had heard something suspicious, pulling his goggles over his glasses he began to scan the area. Once his three brothers realized he was no longer with them they rushed back to his side, Donnie could smell the adrenaline in the air as his brothers waited anxiously to find out what had caught his attention. His younger brother Mikey bounced impatiently on his tiptoes while his two older brothers Leo and Raph maintained their calm demeanor though they were just as eager as their youngest sibling. 

Just as Donnie began to write the distraction off as one of the many sounds of the city, his thermal scanner detected movement atop a building a few blocks away. The team moved in closer to get a better view of the situation. They came to rest on a neighboring building around 3 stories taller than the one where the commotion was taking place, here the brothers could look down on the situation with little chance of being seen. As they peered through the city lights their hearts dropped and their ears roared with adrenaline it was Kari, Shredder’s daughter, she and around half a dozen foot clan solders were moving swiftly to the edge of the roof top, one of the solider dragged a young woman by her hair. Donnie pulled his goggles down again to assess the condition of the girl, she had been beaten but she was conscious.

As the man yanked her to the edge of the building she stared at the ground below. She was kneeled on the wall that skirted the top of the 17 story building, the man’s hand twisted into her long mangled hair. He held her out over the edge just far enough that she couldn’t hold her balance on her own. A young Asian woman stood behind her, she couldn’t see the woman but by the way the man stiffened as the woman approached she knew it was Kari, “We know you have the information Black, we traced the device to your apartment.” “I don’t have it Kari.” The girl stated flatly.

Leo leaned over the building’s railing, looking over the situation, counting the men, assessing their positions and formulating a plan that would take down the clan without harming the girl. Raph stood back from the edge, cracking his knuckles and rolling his massive shoulders, “If we don’t make a move their gonna throw her over onto the street! What the hell are we waiting for Leo?” the turtle whispered. The leader threw his hand out to the side in a motion for Raph to shut up and wait, Raphe’s temper boiled, but he never moved from his place. Mikey squatted next to his older brother Donnie both studying the situation. Mikey shuffled about nervously, his tender heart ached for the girl he wanted to move in, to pull the broken girl to safety but he waited for a signal from Leo. Donnie appeared to be calm as he zoomed in on the girl to assess her well being, he reported that she had been beaten but otherwise, considering the situation, was in a favorable condition. As Donnie zoomed his googles in even closer he could see her face, she was familiar, but from where?  
Her body heaved with every breath she took, she gripped her captor’s arm with both her hands trying to maintain some control over her precarious situation. Donnie’s heart ached for the girl, but he remained still, focused on her and her capture and awaiting Leo’s signal. Kari stepped back, calmly replying to the angry distressed girl “very well Black, then we have no business with you,” and just as calmly she looked at her solder and ordered, “Kanojo o otosu.” For a second she felt a since of relief as the man pulled her back a little before thrusting his arm forward and throwing her off the edge to her death. She tried to hold onto his arm, to maintain her balance but the sudden push forward caught her off guard and she instinctually let go and put her hands forward as if to catch herself. She couldn’t scream, she could breath. As soon as her body hit the air the sensation of falling sucked the breath out of her and replaced it with sheer panic, she couldn’t move she knew she should look around, try to find something to grab onto to stop or at least slow her decent, but she just couldn’t her senses were numb she could barely focus enough to silently utter a short prayer.


	2. Chapter 2

Donnie’s eyes widened, and his blood ran cold as he watched the solider rear back, he could tell the man wasn’t going to pull the girl to safety, judging by the man’s stance he was simply drawing her back so he could get enough force to throw her over the side. Before the man had let go of the girl Donnie was in the air in a freefall, arms out stretched to the helpless body plummeting toward the ground. His brothers flew over him and onto the building where Kari and her goons were caught off guard, bodies flew to the ground at the hands of the mutant vigilantes. In the chaos Kari managed to slip onto the fire escape and make her way down the side of the building undetected.   
The fall was endless and horrifying, she thought it would never end. Her one true fear was now a reality, not the thought of dying but the sensation of falling; not knowing when it would end, but knowing how it would end and the fact that she was absolutely helpless. That is what scared her the most, knowing she could do nothing, that she had no control, only to wait for the inevitable. She closed her eyes hoping her decent would soon end, then for some reason she opened her eyes and looked up, a massive dark figure was falling towards her, with the city lights behind him she could only make out his shape, and the tears in her eyes made that almost impossible. He was close to her now, and she felt two long muscular arms wrap around her and pull her into a huge solid body. She instinctually reached up searching for his neck and wrapping her arms around it. Once she had her hands behind his neck she clutched her forearms in a vice like grip and buried her face into his collar bone. She noticed his skin was rough, leathery and when she opened her eyes she saw that what ever had her was green!  
Once he had her securely in his arms, Donnie reached behind him with one hand unsheathing his spring loaded bo-staff. Keeping one arm tight around the girl’s waist, Donnie pressed the button on his staff, the end struck the side of the building at an angle sending them upward towards the opposite building. With this, Donnie was able to gain control of their decent by sliding down the side of the building on his shell. The girl’s grip was tight around his neck, allowing him to let go of her momentarily and catch the corner of the fire escape just before hitting the ground.  
They had stopped, she had stopped, the falling had stopped, but her feet were still in the air. She hesitated, then leaned away from him and looked down only to see that she was still three stories in the air. Donnie held onto her waist tightly fearing she may loosen her grip and fall, as he casually hung on the edge of the fire escape, with one foot dangling in the air. This was just a small jump for him, but to her she was still horrifically high. She sucked in a mouthful of air and shoved her face back into his neck, tightening her grip to almost choking him. Donnie flushed at the close physical contact, he was not used to being in such close proximity to a human, much less a female human. Though he was quite uncomfortable with the situation, he couldn’t help but notice how soft she was as she hung around his neck, her wet face pressed into his neck and warm breath on his skin. She groaned, “Oohhh, put me down, put me down! I wanna be on the ground!” Even though he was filled with sympathy for the girl and the ordeal she had gone through, he couldn’t help but to find humor at how she was so upset over only being a few stories off the ground, a grin pulled at the corner of his mouth as he scrunched his nose to push his glasses back up on his face. “Hold on” he said as he let go of the medal railing and hopped onto the ground, his gear and gadgets rattling in his back pack. He bent over slightly so her feet could touch the ground. Once she felt the pavement under her feet she couldn’t believe she had survived the whole ordeal, the sudden ambush on her walk home from work, the blindfolding, the beating, the interrogation, another beating and then being thrown from a building. She was alive, and she would be able to walk away from the whole thing, she couldn’t believe it!   
She stood on the ground for a few seconds before she was sure it was real and she could let go of her savior’s neck. Donnie hadn’t anticipated for her to cling onto him for so long, and again he became very uncomfortable, but waited patiently as she slowly began to loosen her grip. With her feet now firmly on the ground she slowly pushed herself away from the green creature in front of her. She first saw a large muscular chest covered in some kind of armor or shell at her eye level, she slowly raised her gaze to the creature’s face, he was incredibly tall with a round tea stained face framed in deep green scales. His amber eyes were magnified by large tortes shell glasses which set over a purple mask, and a pair of odd looking goggles perched on the top of his head. She wasn’t afraid, how could she be he had just saved her life, but simply in awe of the giant thing in front of her.   
Donnie raised his brow and looked her over with wide eyes, assessing her condition, “Are you ok?” he asked. She stepped back, she was unsteady, her head still spinning, he reached a hand out and held on to her forearm until he was sure she had regained her balance. She looked at the giant green hand that held onto her firmly, his hand easily wrapped all the way around her forearm allowing his thumb and one of his only two fingers to overlap. She raised her brow and looked at him dead in the face with wide unbelieving eyes. “What, are you?” Donnie smirked, and with a crooked grin as he matter of factly replied, “A turtle.”


	3. Chapter 3

She stared at him with wide blue eyes, processing the fact that a giant turtle had just told her he was a turtle. A crooked grin pulled at her sore busted lip as she realized who this was, he was one of her old mentor’s test subjects from back in the late 90s.  
She was just finishing her Doctoral in biology when Sachs came to her asking that she lead the team to evaluate the subjects and prepare them for further testing. However, as she worked to secure the IVs and other injections on the leanest of the specimens he began to regain consciousness. The prick of a rather large needle caused him to jerk suddenly scaring her half to death, she knocked the glasses from his face as she tried to catch her balance and not fall from the containment unit. 

She remembered the panic in his eyes, and how she could see his mind working rapidly to make since of the situation. Then he spoak in barely a whisper, “Where am I, where’s my brothers…. Sense?” She knew the mutagen had caused an immeasurable advance in intelligence, but she never dreamed these mutated reptiles were capable of such advanced functions as language, and human like emotions such as grief, and sadness. She reached down, picked up the glasses and gently placed them over his eyes, he squinted as she came into focus in front of him. She studied his features, his expression, and noticed how wet his purple mask appeared, she pulled the glasses from his face again and ran her fingers along the lower edge of the purple cloth, it was wet, he was crying. 

Her moral compass flung her mind into a fit, this was wrong! Whatever experiment Sachs had planned was something to be preformed on a simpleminded beast, she was sure, not a creature with human emotions, thoughts and values. She had to think of a way to change her mentors mind, to study them in a way that would contend with the basic ethical standards of humanity. Her brain reeled, until suddenly she had an idea. She gently placed the glasses back on the turtle’s face, laying a hand on his cheek in an attempt to comfort and reassure him. As she came into focus through his tears he could see the determination wash over her, making her soft expression of concern turn cold and solid.   
Her recollection of their last encounter was interrupted as three other mutant turtles seemed to fall from the sky landing all around her with heavy thuds. Startled, she backed up to the taller turtle in purple and pressed her back against him, once she had surpressed her touch of panic she looked up at him wide eyed, “Your brothers?” Surprised that she seemed to recognize them, he stammered “Why, y…yes, th…th…they are in fact.” The turtle in blue looked her over cautiously, “Have we met Miss?” he asked. “Why yes, we have” she smiled taking in few steps towards him. “I’m sure you don’t remember me, but I defiantly remember ya’ll” her southern drawl rolled off her lips like honey off the combe. With this the youngest turtle’s eyes shot wide open and his arms flew up in sudden realization. “oh! Oh! I know! You’re that pretty science chick that plugged us up when we got caught by Sachs!... I’ll never forget that accent!” Donnie’s jaw dropped as he realized who she was, if it wasn’t for her they wouldn’t be alive.


	4. Chapter 4

“Are the specimens ready?’”  
“Yes, Mr. Sachs, but…”  
“But what Miss.Black, we are on a tight time frame!”  
“These are not just animals, I would like to preserve their well being to study them further to…”  
“No Rae! I have specific plans for these subjects and their wellbeing is the least of my concern.”

Sachs walked into the lab, pushing the plastic divider to the side as he came to look at the turtles for the first time in 15 years, she followed close behind. He marveled at the mutants he had created, the one in the middle addressed him demanding to know what he wanted with them. Sachs obliged and explained his plan to poison the city, only to save it with an antidote made from the mutigine in their blood. Her breath hung in her throat, Eric Sachs had been like a father to her since she had come to New York, he had taken her under his wing as a student and budding scientist and even paid for her education. She had always considered him a wonderful man, but the realization of what this man really was almost sucked the life from her, she had to do something.

He turned to her. “Are they ready Miss. Black? We’re going to drain every drop of their blood to obtain the mutagen.” She thought quickly, “No sir, I need to set up an injection to sedate them if necessary.” He looked at her and smiled slightly, glad that she had decided to be a part of his grand plan. “Very well Miss. Black, see to it.” As he left the room she set to work changing the tranq bags with adrenaline and programing the computers to accommodate a large and emediant dose of adrenaline when queued. She could only hope that no one would notice the change in bags and that she would be able to administer the adrenaline without being discovered by Shredder, she knew that if he caught her he would kill her. As she hung the last bag she was sure to momentarily turn it so the reptile in the holding cell could read the contents, with a slight nod from him she knew he understood. Sachs returned and she gave the order to begin the process of extracting their blood, he watched eagerly as the clear plastic lines turned burgundy.  
\------------------  
“I'm glad to see you got away from Sachs, I saw where the containment units were busted out but I wasn't sure you had made it off the estate alive.” She said looking around at the brothers, with a smile unintentionally lingering on the tallest of the four. They returned her smile as Leo asked what had led her to be in such a bad situation with Karai. The girl sighed and shook her head, “I'm not sure something about stolen data, but Kari knows I'm not a hacker. I think Shredder just wants me out of the way because of how close I was with Sachs.” She rubbed her arms as a shiver ran across her body, her adrenaline had subsided, and the cool night air brought goosebumps to her flesh. Donnie was the first to notice her discomfort and suggested that she needed to head home and get some rest, to this the girl agreed eagerly.  
Concerned that she may be attacked again on the way the brothers offered to escort her home, which she agreed to be the best. She didn't realize that having 4 mutant turtles as escorts meant being carried through the air as they leapt from roof top to roof top. She held on to the turtle’s neck for dear life as her stomach churned with every decent. Mikey was so enthused that she had agreed to his offer to carry her that he couldn't stop jabbering. He was sure to throw in a few extra fancy flips as he leapt through the city, in an attempt to impress the girl he carried in his arms. However this did not set well with her at all, only a few blocks away from her building she made him stop, she clutched her rolling stomach as he gently sat her down. They gathered around her questioning her wellbeing, she waved them away and assured it was only a bad case of motion sickness. Mikey shrunk as his brothers glared at him for showing off rather than considering the girls comfort. After she had composed her self and the green tent had left her face she was ready to move on, however she shied away as Mikey held his arms out for her.  
“ooh. No Hun, you’re to showboaty for me.”  
“oh, come on sweet cheeks don’t be that way” Mikey pouted “I promise I'll be extra smooth this time.”  
She wasn't convinced, she looked at the other three obviously uncomfortable with the idea of putting their hands on her at all. She considered her options and turned to the tallest turtle, he had already caught her one time, so she thought out of the three she should be most comfortable “riding” along with him. 

Donnie went rigid as he realized what her big eyes were asking him to do, he was not a fan of physical contact in any way and the thought of holding an attractive young woman so closely made a lump form in his throat. He pursed his lips and reluctantly held a hand out, she smiled gratefully and standing on her tiptoes wrapped her arms around his shoulders. He scooped her up effortlessly and nodded to his brothers, Raph and Mikey stealing a glance between each other, amused at Donnie's obvious discomfort, they would be sure to tease him about it later. She closed her eyes as he began to leap across the skyline once more, he was sure to move as smoothly as possible to avoid upsetting her further. His mind began to wonder as he moved through the night, as it often did, but instead of the usual list of projects to be completed or started his mind focused on the woman he held tight in his arms. 

Her skin was soft, but her body was firm, she seemed so fragile but strong in intent. She was an enigma to him, sure he had contact with a human woman before, he saw April on a weekly basis, but this was different April was a close friend almost like a sister to him; but this girl was like a drug even in her distressed state he found her scent to be intoxicating, feeling her warmth against him made him melt through to his shell.


	5. Chapter 5

They stopped just long enough for her to point out her apartment, instructing them to go to the balcony. Broken glass crunched under their feet as they landed, Donnie sat the girl on the ground as she wondered into what was left of her apartment bewildered at what she saw. Everything in the place was destroyed, pictures were pulled off the wall and lay broken on the floor, the couch cushions were sliced open with their stuffing strung across the living room. She stood silently, slowly taking in the scene before her, she looked to her left at her little kitchen, she could see that her cabinets had been gutted their contents scattered all over the floor and counter tops. With a heavy sigh she turned her attention to the right and made her way to her bedroom stepping over a large busted planter. 

Her precious bedroom looked the same as the rest of the apartment, the mattress and comforter were shredded, her clothes were torn and scattered about the floor. They even had the gaul to go through her bathroom cabinets, she was heartbroken and disgusted what were you after Karai? As her mind wondered across the mess that used to be her home a heavy hand rested on her shoulder, she turned looking up at the four massive reptiles as she tried to will away the tears that pooled in her eyes. “What were they looking for?” Leo asked. The girl dropped her gaze and sighed heavily, “I don’t know, something to do with stolen information. Karai said they had tracked the device to this building, and given my history with Eric Sachs… I…” she trailed off trying not to choke on the lump in her throat. She turned and fell to her knees, putting her face in her hands trying to hide her sobbing. 

The brothers exchanged looks of sympathy among each other, except Donatello his eyes were wide with sudden realization. He moved away from the girl motioning for his brothers to follow, once they were out of earshot Donnie confessed his mistake.  
The tall lean turtle sighed heavily as guilt weighed him down. “This is my fault. A few months ago, I hacked into the Foot’s mainframe, I knew they would eventually become suspicious and attempt to track my laptop. So, I moved throughout the city, choosing a different location each night, to keep them from finding me…” He looked up at his brothers and then at the girl sitting in the doorway of her bedroom still crying. His eyes fell to the floor as he shook his head, “I worked from her rooftop garden several times. I never thought Karai would accuse one of the residents for...” He looked up as the girl made her way to them, eyes swollen, and her face streaked with tears. Don swallowed hard, he wasn't sure if she had heard his confession, but as she made her way past him she stopped and looked up at him, her tired wet face begging to know how he could have made such a mistake. His heart hung in his chest with guilt, she said nothing and made her way to the telephone hanging on the kitchen wall.   
Thank God she had listened to her parents and maintained a landline; the Foot had taken or destroyed every means of communication she had but oddly enough they left the old-fashioned phone hanging on the wall untouched. Her conversation with the NYPD was brief and to the point, after hanging the phone on the hook she turned to the four standing in what was left of her living room. “The police will be here soon, you should probably go.” She said flatly. “We'll stay until the police get here, just in case Karai tries something.” Leo replied firmly. She sighed, setting up a bar stool and plopping down on it, she was totally spent. She put her elbows on the bar and rubbed her temples before resting her face in her hands. “What are you gonna do after they leave, spend the night?” she asked sarcastically. The boys looked at one another awkwardly, they hadn't thought about the rest of the night, she certainly couldn't stay here, and she would be an easy target in a hotel.   
The awkward silence was broken by the squeak of a cabinet door, the brothers readied themselves for a hidden Foot, as the girl calmly looked over her shoulder. A small fluffy grey cat peeped out of a cabinet, and upon seeing his owner let out a long but quiet cry. Her eyes softened as a smile of relief spread across her face, “Hey Gary Baby.” She coed warmly. She went over and scooped the cat up in her arms and returned to her seat at the bar, the fluffy feline rubbing his affections over her shoulders and face. 

The little cat broke the tension that hung heavy in the apartment, the boys sheathed their weapons, and Mikey eased forward offering his had for the animal to smell. Gary was an extremely affectionate cat, but he was also very picky as to who was allow around his owner. She was surprised when Gary slipped out of her arms and stretched His head up so Mikey could scratch behind his ears. She had never seen the animal more at ease among strangers and couldn't help but smile as Mikey ohed and awed over the unexpected affection.   
By the time the police knocked on her door all four boys were playing and petting her little fur baby, who couldn't be more accepting of the attention. The tension had disappeared completely, and the boys talked freely and giggled at the fuzzy feline. With a second rap at the door, the brothers bid her and Gary a temporary goodbye assuring her they would return once the police were finished.   
They watched from the shadows as the police went about taking photos, dusting for fingerprints and asking the girl the same questions repeatedly.   
Don looked at Leo, “What are we going to do?  
L: not sure, but she can’t stay there alone.  
M: Oh! Someone could stay with her, Mikey said with a huge grin  
R: she don't want your creepy ass hangin around while she’s trying to sleep Mikey.  
M: Brah! Its called charm, even her cat digs me man!  
R: its Don’s fault why don’t he stay and babysit her?  
The color drained from Donnie’s face as sheer panic began to set in, his mind whirled with how to get out of this.   
D: re… regardless of who stays with her, w… we have to agree she can't stay here. Perhaps she could spend the night at the lair, until she can make arrangements to have the damage repaired. Holy shit that’s it! That’s all you could think of Donnie! Th…that way she’s protected and we have some time to develop a plan to get the Foot off her trail.  
Leo didn't like the idea of letting a stranger invade the safety of their home but given the circumstances this really did seem to be the best option.  
L: alright, but your screw up is why she’s gonna be there in the first place so she’s your responsibility Donnie.  
Donnie nodded obediently wondering what he had gotten himself into.


	6. Chapter 6

She smiled and thanked the police as they left her apartment, locking the door behind them. Thank God that’s over she was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to curl up in her bed, but the fact that her mattress laid on the floor ripped to shreds left her clueless as to what to do next. She knew she couldn't stay in this mess, and she'd be an easy pick in a hotel. She was too tired and overwhelmed to think of a solution, so she made her way to the fridge hoping the Foot hadn't discovered her stash, she opened the freezer door, oh Thank the Lord!  
The jar was cold from many months in the freezer, she unscrewed the ring and popped the sealed lid off with her nail, the clear liquid was warm as it slid down her throat all the way to her stomach, it offered a touch of that warm southern comfort she could only find back home. She closed her eyes and thought about the ranch she grew up on, and the liquor almost mimicked the warm southern sun she missed so much. She heard the brothers as they landed on her balcony from their hiding place, she opened her eyes and with a sigh she took another large swig from the Mason jar. 

Don't be hateful they’re just trying to help, she thought to herself as she screwed the lid back on and the liquor began to calm her agitation. “Well what’s the plan.” She asked, staring at them tentatively, they all looked at Donnie as he sighed and stepped forward, “we think it would be best if… if…. you stayed with us for a while. At least until you get this place repaired and in order.” He said rubbing the back of his neck. She stood propped on the kitchen bar, wide eyed as she processed his suggestion. It wasn't a bad idea, but she wasn't too wild about staying with four man like reptiles, especially over night. “I don’t even know your names and you asking me to spend the night at your place?” she asked with a hint of sarcasm. Donnie looked at Leo hoping that perhaps her excuse would be enough to let the whole idea go, but he knew better. Donnie sighed in defeat and reached across the bar to offer his hand to the girl, “I'm Donatello… but you can call me as Donnie if you like” she only stared at him for a moment, not moving a muscle then she looked at the other three, she could tell there was no changing their mind. Sighing in defeat as she met his hand with hers and looked into his amber eyes, “RaeLynn… RaeLynn Black, but everyone calls me Rae.” Her firm grip caught Donnie off guard and the way she looked him dead in the face made him anxious, he quickly averted his eyes, turning to introduce his brothers. 

Once introductions were over she headed to her bedroom to search for something to change into, while Donnie and Raph went out to look for something to cover her broken balcony door. She dug through the pile of clothes on the floor and managed to find a purple tank top and her favorite pair of pajama shorts, they had my little ponies and I heart the 80s all over them. She smiled, but then decided to look for something else, while this was definitely her go to pjs after a long day, she thought it might be best not to expose her dorkyness and so much leg right away. She searched through the tattered clothes until Leo stepped in the doorway and announced that they needed to leave, with that she pushed the pile of rags off her lap and grabbed her pony pjs off her dresser. She made sure Gary was tucked away safe and cozy in her bathroom with plenty of food and some of her clothes to snuggle up in, after one last cuddle from her fur baby she walked up to Donnie and waited for him to pick her up. He swallowed hard as he tried not to let his nerves get the best of him. He reached out hoping she wouldn't notice his shaking hands, even though his brothers did, but just before he could touch her she stepped back and looked up at him, her eyes narrowed, “where do you guys live anyway?”


	7. Chapter 7

It was no trouble getting her underground because as soon as they were out of her apartment she buried her face in Donnie’s plastron and closed her eyes, but once she caught a whiff of the sewer it was all he could do to hold on to her as they slid through the tunnels. She tried to push herself away from him, as they slipped into a tunnel filled with water, but he his grip was made of iron, “I can't stop so your committed till we reach to pool.” He said as he pulled her into his chest. “what pool!” she spat, trying to pull strands of her wet hair out of her mouth, just then they reached a drop off the tunnel became so steep that they were almost falling instead of sliding. She gasped and squeezed Donnie's neck, she tucked her face next to his, making his cheeks burst into flames. He loved every second of it, how she held him tight, and how he was able to hold her wrapped in his arms, he didn't even mind her wet hair sticking to his face, as long as he was able to stay this close to her. 

“Hold your breath!" he shouted just seconds before they were submerged in the pool located in the center of their lair. Once under water she was able to wiggle free of his grip and she burst out of the water gasping for air. She swam to the side and heaved herself on to the concrete, slapping her wet pajamas on the floor next to her, she glared through her wet hair at the four heads bobbing in the water. “I feel like a wet rat.” She said tartly, a raspy voice came from behind her, “what's wrong with being a wet rat?” she turned to see a huge rat just over five feet tall looking down at her. She shrieked and jumped back in the pool almost landing on Raph’s head, she hid behind the massive turtle and fumed as she heard him chuckle slightly. The rat’s scolding stair went fairly unnoticed by his amused sons, who were too busy giggling at the girl’s reaction. The rat sighed, “do not be afraid my child, I see my sons did not inform you as to whom you would meet, nor what I would look like.” She peeped around Raph’s shell, the rat stood at the edge of the pool with a soft warm smile, he then held a finger up as he shuffled away to return with a towel in hand. She looked at Mikey utterly dumfounded, “he’s our dad, he raised us after we got away from Sachs.” Her mouth fell open, Sachs had told her about project renaissance and she recalled him mentioning the four turtles and a rat, but this…. This was almost more than she could process. 

Leo stood and hopped out of the pool with ease followed by the other three, Donnie turned and offered a hand to the girl still treading water, she backed away with no intention of leaving the safety of the pool. He couldn't help but be amused, “you cant tread water all night, besides Master Splinter is the best out of all of us.” he assured trying to smile warmly. She looked at him then at the rat waiting patently holding the towel open for her before paddling up and taking Donnie’s hand. Donnie pulled her out of the water quickly and with ease, causing her to fall against him as her foot caught the edge of the pool, his heart leapt at the unexpected physical encountor. After composing herself she turned to the rat who smiled at her the way a loving father would, and wrapped the warm dry towel around her shoulders, his touch was comforting and she smiled back with gratitude. “Come on I'll show you around” Donnie said gesturing towards what looked like a living area, she started to follow and then turned to see her still soaked pjs laying on the floor next to the pool. She was exhausted and her only clean clothes were soaked in sewer water, she felt pitiful. The rat noticed the clothes on the floor and bent to pick them up, he shuffled over to Donnie and placed them in the turtle’s hand, she looked at him, “that is literally all I have to wear.” She said sadly. Donnie called for Mikey and instructed him to go wash and dry her clothes while he proceeded to show her around the lair.

She was genuinely impressed with how they had created such an interesting and functional home out of the junction of sewer tunnels, but she was too tired to comprehend it all. Donnie was in the middle of showing her his computer cave when he felt, her soft hand pull at his arm, the unexpected contact made his heart jump and he turned quickly to look down at a ragged girl with exhausted eyes, “Hun, this is really impressive, but I just want a shower, dry clothes and someplace to sleep.” He swallowed hard, “of…. Of course, I'll show to the bathroom.”   
The shower was hot, and the rain style shower head was amazing, she soaked up the heat as the water washed the anxiety of the day away, it was all unbelievable, but she was just too tired to take it all in. She turned and hissed as the hot water hit the open cuts on her back; when Karai realized a basic beating wouldn't provide the information she wanted she pulled out her sword and laid into Rae leaving four large wounds across the girls back. She looked down to see her blood swirling down the drain, as she waited for the bleeding to stop she thought about her present situation and the hero’s who had saved her. She decided that she was here whether she liked it or not and these mutated creatures had been nothing but kind to her, so what did she have to lose by loosening up and trusting them fully. The water beneath her feet began to run clear and she jumped as she heard a knock at the door, Mikey’s voice rung out announcing he had left her clean clothes just inside the door. 

She pulled bathroom door open as the steam rolled out into the cool hallway, the sudden rush of cold air made her skin prickle, she looked down at her chest it was very obvious she was cold, she huffed and crossed her arms and followed the voices back to the living area. The long hot shower had renewed her, even though she was very sore and still exhausted, she was able to admire her surroundings with more enthusiasm than before. She tugged at her shorts as she walked they seemed extra snug Mikey must have shrunk them or something, it feels like they're glued to my ass she thought as she wiggled to loosen them away from her skin. The boys were spread through out the open kitchen and living room, chatting and sipping their drinks. Mikey and Raph stood in the kitchen munching on some donuts while Don, Leo and Splinter studied a game of chess between the two turtles. Mikey was the first to notice her coming down the hall and he couldn't help but to stair.It didn't take long for the others to notice how still and quiet Mikey had become, they followed his gaze until they all landed on the girl. Her legs were long as they strolled down the hall, her damp waves bounced around her face with every step. As she came into the living room she could feel that she was the center of attention which made her very uncomfortable, but with the clearing of his throat Splinter snapped his sons out of their trance. Mikey asked if she was hungry to which she replied with an eager nod, and after a cup of hot coffee and a couple of donuts Leo invited her to get comfortable in the living room. 

Hugging the warm mug in her hands she stood behind the couch and studied the game that was still at an impasse. “who's turn is it,” she asked pointing at the board, Leo sighed, “Donnie's but he's been staring at the board for almost 2 days, he refuses to call it a draw and start a new game.” Leo leaned back in his chair shooting a frustrated glance at Donnie who sat on the couch hunched over with his elbows on his knees, and his chin resting in his hands. “He just don't want to admit that he's met his intellectual match.” Leo grinned as he folded his arms across his chest. Donnie paid the comment no mind and continued to study the game. She made her way around the couch and took a seat next to Donnie, she studied the board for a moment and smiled, she patted his arm which snatched him from his thought, he unintentionally shot her an ill-tempered glare, she shrunk back a bit and pointed at the board, “do you mind?” she asked hesitantly. Donnie scoffed at the thought she may be able to out think him after only studying the matter for a few short minutes, he leaned back and gestured his approval, crossing his arms waiting for her to make her move. She rolled her eyes and leaned up to the board, taking his knight and blocking Leo’s queen with it, she smiled at Leo who sat wide eyed with his mouth hanging open, “checkmate!” She grinned. A grin spread across Leo’s face as he looked up at Donnie who sat staring at the game in disbelief, Donnie’s eyes shifted to the girl now tucking her legs under herself in an attempt to keep warm. “how did you… I've been staring at this thing for 38 hours and 14 minutes!” she shrugged and took a sip of her coffee, “you've been looking at it for too long” she replied with a shiver, he took a moment to look her over making note of the goosebumps that covered her skin, he stood without a word and headed toward his bedroom still pondering how she had outwitted him so easily. She looked at Leo and Splinter, “I didn't mean to upset him” Splinter smiled gently as Leo waved her worry away, “he'll be ok, he's not used to having someone best him in any type of intellectual challenge you just caught him off guard.” Splinter nodded in agreement stroking his beard, “it's good to finally meet someone who can teach Donatello some humility regarding such matters of the mind.” While she appreciated their attempt to reassure her she still hated the fact that she may have upset him, the guy did just save her life a few hours before. 

She sat contemplating an apology when she felt a heavy blanket being laid across her shoulders from behind. She turned to see Donnie's arm reached around her as he wrapped her in his favorite purple blanket., she smiled up at him in great appreciation, as he made his way around the couch back to his spot beside her. She set her coffee cup down on the end table and wrapped up in the warm fuzzy blanket, it smelled like him and considering how much time she had recently spent pressed against his body she found the familiar scent comforting. Mikey and Raph made their way into the living room, Raph sat in an oversized recliner beside the couch while Mikey got comfortable on the couch beside Rae. He giggled and nudged the girl with his hand, “you’re not cold are you sweet cheeks?” her eyes smiled at him as she nodded her head slightly. She had crossed her legs and wrapped the blanket all the way around her so all he could see was her eyes and a few stray curls peaking out of the top. Donnie was busy putting away the chess game and hadn't paid her much mind until he overheard Mikey's comment, with that he turned and looked at the mountain of blanket with her just barely visible at the peak. She was quite cute snuggled up in his blanket, he couldn't help but to smiled warmly at the sight. He put the board away and pulled out a box of DVDs and sat back down beside her, “would the victor like to choose the movie for this evening” he asked smiling. She watched as he thumbed through the DVDs stopping him when she saw one of her favorite comfort movies, The Breakfast Club. Donnie’s face could barely fit the grin that spread across it, Mikey and Raph groaned when they saw her choice. As they watched the opening credits, Rae and Donnie hummed along to the 80s tunes and Mikey spoke up, remembering reading her shorts as he washed them, “you really do love the 80s don't you Sweet cheeks?” Again, her eyes smiled as he nodded eagerly from her purple cocoon. 

They hadn't watched 20 minutes of the movie when Donnie noticed a warm lump against his side, she had fallen asleep and was slumped over against him. The unintentional cuddle made his cheeks burn, especially when he looked to see Mikey giggling at his obvious discomfort. Donnie looked at Leo, “what do I do?” he whispered to his eldest brother, Leo shrugged and turned his attention back to the TV, Donnie looked at Raph who just laughed and chewed on his toothpick. Finally, Mikey spoke up, “Brah, if it was me I'd soak up all the cuddles I could.” This wasn't the answer Don was looking for but he had to admit that he did like the physical attention intended or not, so he pulled her up so that she wasn't so slumped over and wrapped his arm around her. She hummed and snuggled into his chest finally warm and comfortable.


	8. Chapter 8

She woke up in a bed shaped like a bowl still wrapped in Donnie’s blanket, rubbing the sleep from her eyes she tried to focus them, her body ached all over, her bones and muscles popped and cracked loudly as she stretched, the skin on her back felt raw and hot. She laid in the bed for a few minutes trying to recall the previous night and how she had wound up there. It was a lot to remember but when she heard the hum of Mikey, Leo, and Raph sleeping in the beds around her she recalled everything easily and to her surprise she was at ease in her surroundings. She had no idea what time it was as she looked around for a clock, then it dawned on her, where’s Donnie?

She looked around the dark lair trying to recall the layout, she heard a loud snoring coming from the living room. Slipping out of the bed and wrapping Don’s blanket around her shoulders she tiptoed toward the sound, to find Donnie laying on the couch which was much to short for the tall reptile as at least two feet of legs were hanging off the end. He was snoring loudly with a notepad laying on his plastron and a pen still in hand, Rae laughed silently, and leaned over the couch taking the pen and pad away, placing them on the end table. She pulled the blanket from around her shoulders and covered him the best she could, then she gently began to remove his glasses, he felt her hands brush his face and it startled him awake. Before she had time to react he had grabbed her wrist and snatched her down, she lost her balance and fell over the back of the couch landing on his plastron with a loud “ooof" they were both surprised as they lay there looking into each other’s wide eyes. Donnie was embarrassed and half asleep, he tried to think of something to say but all he could utter was, “oh… uhhhhh… sorry" She smiled her quick wit setting in, “Hun if you wanted to snuggle you could've just asked.” She said trying to play off her discomfort. She slid off of him as he sat up rubbing his eyes under his glasses, “what are you doing in here?” he groaned, she yawned “what are you doing in here? Why don't you go to bed?”  
D: “because you were in my bed.

R: oh, I could've slept on the couch, by the looks of it I'd fit better than you by far.   
Donnie just sighed and looked at her with tired eyes. “are we gonna sit her and argue over who sleeps where.” She sighed, “no, I can sleep anywhere… but I get to keep the blanket.” She said as she pulled the blanket from his lap and proceeded to wrap up in her cocoon. He chuckled at how cute she was and stood up to stretch, he looked down at the bundle of purple, as he scratched his side. “are you really that cold?” he asked. She moved the blanket from her lips, “it's freezing I don't see how ya'll stand it!... especially in here this is the coldest room in the whole place!” She said shivering. He yawned and gestured for her to return to his bed only to be met with a tart “no! I'm not coming out! It’s too cold!”   
D: you know I can just carry you in there right? How do you think you got there in the first place?  
R: goodnight Donnie… go to bed.

He sighed and bent over to pick her up, she was so swaddled in her blanket that she couldn't get her arms out quick enough to “fight” back in protest so she just fussed as he carried her to his bed and laid her down. He was already walking away before she was able to scoot out of her wrappings, she grabbed a pillow and flung it at the back of his head. Don stopped, bent over and snatched the pillow off the floor and then walked back to his bed and stood over her, he was grouchy, and she could tell, he was intimidating as he loomed over her. She swallowed hard, “get in the bed.” She whispered. He shook his head and tossed the pillow back in the bed, he turned to head back to the couch only to be met with another pillow to the back of his head. Again, he snatched the pillow off the floor and walked back to the girl sitting in his bed, they stared at each other neither wavered, “Get your ass in this bed Donnie you’re not gonna hang off that damn couch all night!” she whispered forcefully. Again, he shook his head and turned to walk away, “If you don’t get in this bed I'm gonna irritate the shit out of you all night!” she whispered. With that he stopped He was too tired to argue, and he really did hate sleeping on the couch, he tossed the pillow on the bed as she slid over as close to the edge as possible. He removed his glasses and rolled into bed being sure to shoot her a dirty look before rolling away from her, she huffed and wrapped up in his blanket unsure about sharing a bed with a mutated male turtle. She winced as she rolled over, her back throbbed as it began to feel warm and moist, she shivered as she slipped off to sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

Donnie woke up slowly breathing in the girl who lay next to him, her familiar scent was almost intoxicating to him. He opened his eyes and almost jumped when he realized he had rolled over in the night and pulled her to him. She was laying on her back her arms over her head with one of Donnie's arms under her and the other laying across her waist and up her side. He looked around to see if any of his brothers were awake, Mikey would give him hell for sure, but he relaxed as he heard the hum of their gentle breathing. He laid back down and looked at the girl beside him, she was beautiful, but as he blinked the sleep from his eyes he noticed she looked much paler than before her skin even had a tent of grey to it. He felt her face she was cold as ice and didn't stir at all to his touch. He sat up searching for his glasses, as he did he pulled his arm from beneath her, it was wet and sticky. Don pushed his glasses on his face quickly and looked down at his arm it was covered in blood! 

Panicked, he reached down and shook the girl’s shoulders, she didn't move. He shouted her name as he put his hands on her face, he leaned in close she was still breathing but it was shallow and barely detectable. He rolled her over onto her side and his eyes grew wide as he saw a pool of blood where she was laying, he pulled her tank top up to reveal four deep gashes running horizontally across her back. His shouting had awakened his brothers who were now standing at his bedside staring at the lifeless girl in horror. 

Donnie scooped her up and headed for his lab instructing Leo to clear off one of the tables, Raph to get the first aid kit and for Mikey to boil some bandages. He laid her on her stomach then grabbed a pair of scissors and started cutting open the back of her shirt. Raph laid out the contents of the first aid kit as Mikey came in with a pot of hot water and some clean cloths. Donnie instructed Raph to add certain antiseptics to the water to prepare the bandages, Don dipped a cloth in the water and began to clean the girl's wounds. The blood had begun to clot but she was still bleeding steadily, he considered stitches, but he knew that she had lost too much blood for them to really make a difference. She needed a transfusion but that was impossible, even if by chance one of them shared the same blood type as the girl, her body would never accept such a large amount of mutated reptile blood. 

He looked at the poor human dying in front of him, he felt his heartbreak as her breath slowed, there was nothing he could do for her he was completely helpless, and it was his fault she was laying there to begin with. He turned the girl over and slid her off the table into his lap. Splinter, who had been watching from the lab door, came over and removed his outer robe to cover the girls now bare torso, he then placed a hand on Donnie’s shoulder. Donnie looked up at his Master and then at his brothers, tears began to streak their faces, there was nothing they could say or do to console him or help the girl. He looked down and touched her face as tears began to roll down his cheeks, he tried to process his emotions, he barely knew the girl, but his heart ached the same as it did when he watched Shredder almost beat his father to death, if it weren't for the mutagen he may have lost Splinter too. The mutagen!

Donnie’s head popped up he stood quickly and gently laid the girl back on the table. He rushed to the other side of his lab to a small safe tucked away behind some old computer parts. He raked his arm across the table in front the safe sending the parts crashing to the floor, the buttons lit up as he quickly punched in the code to unlock it. The safe hissed as he opened the door and an icy fog rolled out, he reached inside and pulled out a vile containing a little more than a milliliter of the thick green liquid. He prayed it would be enough, as he slipped the vile into a carrier and frantically searched for a syringe and needle small enough to fit her tiny veins. 

He sat the carrier on the table next to the girl, then leaned over her face and listened closely her breaths were short and forced but she was still alive, he chose an arm which the veins looked most favorable and prepared the injection site. Leo set his jaw when he saw Donnie draw the mutagen into the syringe, Donnie was supposed to dispose of the left-over mutagen, Leo never thought his brother would lie and keep such a secret from him and his family. Donnie slipped the needle into the vein easily and slowly began to administer the mutagen. “Do you know what that will do to her?” Leo asked assertively. “I’m hoping it will heal her and save her life.” Donnie snapped back not wavering from his work. Please work! Don prayed silently. 

Once the syringe was empty he removed the needle from her arm his expression fell when there wasn't a drop of blood to well from the injection site. He sat in his office chair and watched hoping to see some kind of reaction, they all stared at the girl for what seemed to be an eternity but there was no change. Her chest rose slightly and fell one last time as she let out a faint exhale, they all heard it and knew what it meant, Leo stepped forward and reached for the girl's wrist, he couldn't find a pulse and her skin was thick and icy. He laid her hand on her chest and reached over the table to squeeze Don's hand before quietly leaving the lab. Mikey and Raph could only stare at the heartbreaking sight as tears rolled relentlessly down their faces. Splinter could see the pain in their faces and gently escorted them out of the lab, leaving Donnie alone with the girl’s cold body.


	10. Chapter 10

Donnie reached up and put his massive hand over the girl’s cold dainty hand. He held it as he began to sob, he had failed her, if he had only looked her over more thoroughly, paid attention to the signs, she shouldn't have been so cold why didn't I ask, she winced every time I touched her back why didn't I ask! Why didn't she say something she must have been in pain? He squeezed her lifeless hand as the heartache and sadness rolled through his body draining every bit of his self control, he groaned in pain as he squeezed her hand tighter. He loosened his grip as he began to feel weak from his anguish, but he still felt her hand tight around his. He looked up through his smudged lenses, her fingers were wrapped around his firmly. He stood slowly wiping his eyes and observed the girl closely. She was breathing, shallow, at first but her breaths began to deepen as they became stronger, her skin warmed as the color flowed back into her body. He watched as a bruise on her jaw faded away, he pushed her over onto her side and watched the gashes slowly close leaving no trace of their existence other than the streaks of dried blood on her skin. It had worked, he couldn't believe it

He Gently rolled her onto her back, placed a hand on her face and whispered her name, she took in a deep breath and her eyes fluttered open as she released it. His heart swelled as a tired smile spread across her face. he was overwhelmed with emotion as he felt her hand come to rest on his tear-soaked face, he turned and placed a long soft kiss in her palm. She reached up with her other hand and wiped a tear from his cheek, he could tell she was weak her movements were slow and clumsy. Donnie called for his brothers as they rushed in he instructed Mikey to put his bedding in the wash so that he could move her to the bedroom. They looked at each other worry and sadness spread across their faces. Leo stepped around the table refusing to look at the girl’s body, he put a firm hand on Donnie’s shoulder as he still hovered over the girl. “Don there's nothing else you can….” Leo's eyes grew wide as he felt the gentle squeeze of her hand on his wrist. He looked down to see the girl smiling up at him barely able to hold her eyes open, he looked up at his brother. “She's very weak but her wounds are completely healed, I think with adequate rest she'll recover fine.” Don said with a slight smile. Leo could only stare at his younger brother in disbelief, he slowly shifted his eyes to Mikey and Raph their expressions a mixture of shock and amazement. 

Don laid in Leo's bed as he tentatively watched the girl sleeping in his own nest. As he watched the gentle rise and fall of her chest with each breath his mind recapped on the past 24 hours. Out of the 4 brothers he was thought to be the most stoic, sure he could cut loose and have fun with the rest of them but when it came to deep emotions he seemed lock up, fearing they may impair his judgment, causing miscalculations, which could cause his family to pay a highest price. He recalled how he had slipped up and let his emotions get the best of him with Rae, how he stayed drunk on her scent, her skin, her eyes… her body. Damnit Donnie snap out of it! He remembered how he was so caught up in her that he never once noticed the obvious signs of her fading health, causing him to almost loose her forever. What a minute, what the hell Donnie! You barely know the girl! 

His mind was at war with his heart, he had feelings for the girl, but his brain told him they were illogical, he knew nothing of the girl other than her name, where she lived and she had a cat she was crazy about. There was simply not enough information to support the absurd theory of them having enough in common to develop a romantic relationship, not to mention the fact he was easily three times her size, a green mutant, and a different species. Ahhh… but the way she touched my face when she finally woke from the mutagen. 

Donnie's mind was so preoccupied with waging war against his feelings that he didn't hear Splinter come into the room, he could see his son was deep in thought and cleared his throat in a futile attempt not to startle the genius. The sound snatched Don out of his thoughts almost causing him the fall out of the nest as he quickly turned to see who had snuck up on him. “Donatello, I see your mind is much too busy to rest so I will not suggest it, however you must eat and take care of yourself, if she wakes and needs your assistance she will need you at your best... you cannot pour from an empty cup my son.” Donnie looked up at his wise sensei who was resting a paw on his shoulder, he exhaled and looked back at the girl still sleeping. “I will stay with the girl while you are gone and will call you at the first sign of change.” Splinter said in an effort to reassure his uncertain son. Donnie was hungry, and his Master was right, they didn't know how she would respond to the mutagen and he needed to be of strong mind and body should something go wrong. He stood and bowed to his Master before stealing one last glance at the girl and then heading for the kitchen. Splinter pulled a chair up to the girl’s bedside and gently sat down, he looked the girl over and smiled warmly, she was pretty, and he could tell she was very strong on spirit. He chuckled slightly, “my child you have my poor son in a terrible fit” he whispered.

M: I can't believe it Dude… Donnie brought her back, you said yourself she had no pulse. – Mikey stared at his soda wide eyed  
Leo just shook his head as he stood propped against the counter with his arms folded.  
R: what’s your problem Leo you look like you have a bug up your ass  
L: Donnie was supposed to destroy the rest of the mutagen, what if it had fallen in to the wrong hands. What if Shredder…  
M: seriously brah, we just watched our brother bring a human being back to life and your stressin over a little fib?  
L: I'm still going to say something to Donnie about…  
R: Leo don't be a dick, leave Donnie alone.  
M: seriously brah!

Leo just shook his head, but decided his brothers were right, the mutagen is gone now and no harm was done, no need in beating a dead horse. He looked up and forced himself to relax when he saw Don walking in from the bedroom. Without saying a word Donnie made his way to the fridge, fished out some cold pizza and walked to the kitchen table after a stopping at the microwave to warm his meal. He was starving but was too tired to eat, he sat and picked at the slices in his plate, Mikey grabbed a soda from the fridge and set it down in front of Donnie as he took a seat at the table, Donnie glanced up to show an appreciative smile. 

M: so, how is she?  
D: sigh- still asleep  
M: how long do you think it'll be before she wakes up?  
D: rubs his temples – not sure, its not the sleeping that concerns me its… it’s what she'll be like once awake.  
Donnie's brothers exchanged wide eyed looks of worry.   
L: should we prepare for her reaction to the mutagen.   
Donnie looked up at his eldest brother and shrugged his shoulders before finally taking a large bite of his pizza.

Splinter watched tentatively as the girl’s eyes danced behind her lids, her breath began to quicken, just when he was about to call for Donatello she sat straight up and choked on a mouthful of air. Rae looked around rapidly her eyes wide with fear as she panted for air. Splinter placed a hand on hers, but she jerked away staring at him wildly. “it is alright my child, you are safe among friends.” He coed. Her mind raced, she shoved her face into her hands trying to gain control of her thoughts, she knew she was safe, but her brain was in overdrive and she felt as if she was boiling from the inside out. Splinter called for Donnie and tried to speak to the girl again.  
S: RaeLynn it is alright, you are safe.  
She sat cross legged in the nest, her hands on her temples and her eyes pressed shut. Donnie and his brothers we just entering the room.  
RL: I know!.. I hurt! My head!... I'm so hot!  
All eyes went to Donnie who was trying to push his fear and pain for the girl aside, so he could formulate a treatment; but his mind was blank, and his heart sank as she began to groan in agony.


	11. Chapter 11

Her whole body felt like it was on fire and her mind was such a blur she could barely comprehend where she was or even who she was. Then a familiar feeling rolled over her, she remembered her first sunburn and how her skin felt hot and tight like it did now. She remembered how her mother had rubbed aloe vera all over her and told her to stay out of the sun. Her mind drifted on at how she had decided to learn to play the guitar while she was stuck inside. The instrument was too big for her and stung against her tinder skin when it sat in her lap. Then she remembered going downstairs to sing the first song she had learned on the old wooden box. She sat in her momma and daddy’s living room and sang you are my sunshine, when she looked up and saw the pride shinning on her daddy's face it made it all worth it, the pain from the sunburn, the frustration of wrong cords, and even the soar fingers were nothing after seeing her parents smile.   
Splinter and his sons watched as the girl began to relax, her hands gently fell to her lap as she sat humming a tune with her eyes closed. Splinter recognized the tune and began to sing along with her soft humming.

S: you are my sunshine, my only sun shine, you make me happy when skies are gray, you'll never know dear how much I love you  
S & RL: please don't take my sun shine away…  
She opened her eyes slowly and smiled at the old rat who stood resting a hand on hers.   
S: welcome back my child

Rae just smiled her heart warm from her memories, and her body and mind releaved of the ordeal. Donnie slowly eased toward the girl not sure what to expect.

D: how do you feel Rae?  
She thought for a moment, “hungry”  
M: we can fix that Babe, what’s on the menu? Anything you want!  
She thought for another moment then looked at mikey's smiling face  
RL: shrimp n grits  
M: uhhhh… how about some reheated pizza.

The girl laughed and blessed poor Mikey’s heart as she slid out of the nest and slipped her arm under his. Mikey smiled and bowed dramatically before escorting his lady down the hall to the kitchen.

She looked up from her slice of pizza at the four green faces staring at her in disbelief. She raised a brow wondering what caused the gaping stairs, she was at a loss until she looked down to see the empty pizza box in front of her. With out realizing it she had inhaled more than half of an extra large meat lovers, leaving nothing but dust in the cardboard box. She set the slice on the plate and wiped her face trying to compose herself, and hide the embarrassment of her terrible manners. Leo could see her discomfort and spoke up trying to deter their minds from her gluttonous performance. 

L: so… how do you feel now?  
RL: fine… I wouldn't mind a shower and some new clothes though. 

She looked down at Splinters well worn robe he had lent her. It was comfortable, but she was ready to head home and begin putting her life back together, and she would surely be a sight strolling down the street in the dingy old yellow robe.

RL: yellow just isn't my color.  
M: well, I washed the clothes you had on when you came in, but I think the top shrank, and Donnie cut your other top up to…  
RL: what! You cut my clothes off of me! She growled as her head whipped around to glare at the tall turtle.   
Donnie almost choked on his coffee at the accusation. “What! No… uuhhh… well yes i…”   
R: he was trying to save your life!  
Her head snapped back around as she glared at Raph. Eventhough she was obviously no physical threat to the hulking turtle he couldn't help but to shrink away from her angry stare.   
RL: save my life! From what! What reason do you have to undress me without MY consent?!  
L: do you not remember anything?

Seeing the painful memory fill their faces she recoiled and filed through her mind trying to recall what had happened. The last thing she could remember was throwing a fit, and a few pillows, so that Donnie would come to bed instead of hanging off the couch. She remembered being cold, her muscles ached and her back stung as she faded off to sleep, then she remembered Donnie's hand on her stomach as he pulled her to him in his sleep. She tried to say something to wake him but she was so weak she couldn't move, she could barely breathe, she could see her arm stretched out in front of her and she remembered it was covered in blood… her blood.   
Her eyes darted across the floor as the memories began to flood in and she began to piece the clues together. She began to realize she should still be sore, she touched her lip that Karai had busted during her interrogation, it was healed. She reached behind and ran her fingers along her back, her skin was smooth. She looked up at the brothers completely confused.  
Donnie spoke up, “It was the mutagen,” she squinted her eyes as the memory of waking up on the cold metal table made it’s way into her mind. “I woke up and…” Donnie swallowed the lump hanging in his throat, “We, were covered in your blood… by the time I realized the severity of your injuries it was almost too late… I had a little more than a milliliter of the mutagen left and I… I injected it into your bloodstream.”   
She swallowed hard as she looked at him with wide eyes, being so close with Sachs she was well aware of what the mutagen was capable of, but it had never been tested on a human so any adverse effects were completely unknown. 

L:“Do you remember anything? I checked your pulse right after Don gave you the mutagen… you were dead Rae.”   
RL: No… not really. 

She lied, she remembered waking up to Donnie’s tear stained face and how their affection for one another hung thick in the air. It was as real as it was raw, but the thought of having such strong feelings for the turtle was absolutely illogical to her, but she couldn't deny that they existed. 

Donnie's phone rang and he stepped to the side to answer the call.  
D: Oh hey April! Yeah, we need a favor… No we're good on pizza.  
M: No we're not! We could always use more pizza!... Hey Angel Ca…  
D: Shut Up Mikey!

Donnie stepped into the living room so he could finish his conversation without interruption. After a few short minutes he pocketed his phone and came back to the kitchen, smiling at Rae. “Good news, April’s on her way over and she's bringing you some extra clothes.” He said with an accomplished grin. Rae looked around at the other smiling faces with curiosity, “who's April?”


	12. Chapter 12

Rae flopped down onto Donnie’s bed and thrust her hips up as she tried to wiggle into April’s size 5 jeans, she was a snug 7 making the simple task a major effort. There was a knock at the door, “do they fit?” April called, Rae huffed as she finally fastened the button, once she got the jeans over her hips they fit her waist fairly well. “Mercy! They're tight but I think they'll work” She replied back half out of breath. Rae then pulled April's t-shirt on and looked in the mirror by Mikey’s bed, it was tight and a little to short showing a few inches over lower stomach, Damn, this girl needs to eat a cheese burger, Rae thought as she tried to straighten herself out, she eventually gave up and slipped her boots on before walking out for the ‘big reveal.’

“Wow, they're a little… tight aren't they?” April said as she looked up at the blonde packed into her hand me downs. “Just a little, but as long as the seams hold up till I can buy a few things they'll work. I really appreciate it.” Rae smiled as she tugged at the shirt. April looked the girl over and shook her head

RL: what?  
A: you got a jacket?  
RL: no, why is it cold?  
A: not really but you are.

Rae looked down, the shirt was pulled tight across her chest making any little bump very noticeable. Rae sighed, “Damnit, I can't go out there in front of the guys like this.” April laughed under her breath as she walked over to boys’ dresser, each drawer belonged to a different turtle and April began to root through the drawers until she found a hoodie that didn't smell of Axe or sweat. She tossed it at Rae who signed and shook her head at the piece of clothing. 

A:“What's wrong, don't you like purple?”   
RL: “Its not the color it’s the owner.”

April opened her mouth in question but was cut off by Leo's voice ringing down the hall. “You about done in there, we need to move if we're going to get Rae home before sunrise.” Rae slipped the hoodie over her head, and walked out to the living room carefull not to take too long of a stride for the fear of busting a seam. 

“I think my calculations were off a bit.” Donnie said as he looked at Rae with his head cocked to the side, “looks like you’re a bit bigger than I thought.” “yeah, just a bit" Rae replied, refusing to look at the turtle who was unintentionally staring at how well her painted on Jeans accentuated her curves. Raph noticed the girl's discomfort under his younger brothers stare, and suggested they get moving before Leo threw a tantrum. Mikey bowed and offered an arm to each girl then smiled cheekily as the three of them followed Leo down one of the tunnels. Raph hung back with Donnie, who kept his eyes glued to the blonde in front of him.

R: Dude Don, put your eyes back in your head, Raph whispered as he nudged his taller brother.  
Don rolled his eyes, “what are you talking about?” he hissed.  
R: You man, you can't keep your eyes off her, your gonna creep her out, hell your creepin me out.  
D: your full of crap Raph!  
R: oh yeah? You got a banana in your front pocket? You didn't get that from staring at Mikey's ugly ass I hope.

Donnie's face burst into flames, he knew it was there but assumed it to be fairly unnoticeable, apparently he was mistaken. He decided to distract himself with figuring out what to do once they got the girl home, she couldn't stay alone, at least not until they got Karai off her trail.

Leo poked his head up through the manhole , making sure there wasn't anyone around before giving the ok for the rest to follow. “After you my ladies,” Mikey bowed with a hand held out, April just rolled her eyes and climbed up the ladder to the street above. Rae hesitated remembering the strained seems of her Jeans, she told the other three to go ahead of her, she didn't want to risk any of the boys being behind her just in case the seams decided to give away. 

Raph was the last turtle through the man hole and he turned to offer Rae a hand, he snatched her up catching her hoodie on a piece of jagged metal sticking out on the ladder, she cussed as she heard the fabric tear. “Damnit Raph!” “Oh shit, sorry” she pulled the bottom of the sweater out and looked at the tear that ran right down the middle. Raph apologized to April for tearing her clothes, “Oh it’s ok, it’s not mine anyway… its Donnie's.” she replied with a smirk. Donnie, who was distracted trying to plan the best route to Rae's building, snapped around and looked at what was left of the purple garment, “why are you wearing my clothes?” he asked pushing his glasses up his nose. “Cause you suck at sizing, and my clothes are way to tight on her… so I borrowed one of your jackets for het.” April snapped back, her eyes daring him to argue with her on the subject. Leo rolled his eyes, “we've gotta move if we're going to get Rae home without getting caught.” Donnie and Leo turned away as Donnie pointed out the fasted way they could travel without being detected, of course it was across the rooftop. Rae pulled the hoodie off and tossed it on to a pile of trash in the alley, she tugged at the shirt trying to at least cover her bellybutton. 

The brothers turned back to go over the route with the others, Rae groaned when Leo explained they would have to move over the city. With that April decided to head home via the subway, although she had been carried across the skyline several times she tried to dodge the ordeal every chance she could. She bid everyone good morning, and made her way through the group, she stopped at Donnie who seemed to be in a trance, April leaned in and whispered to the tall turtle, “she looks good doesn't she?”   
“uh huhhh, wait what! Damnit April.” The mischievous reporter just waved over her shoulder as she quickly made her way to the well lit street. 

Rae squirmed under Don's touch as he carried her over the city, his scaley hands were rough on her bare skin. He repositioned his hands and dug his fingers into her side in an attempt to get a better grip, but it only made her squeal and jump almost causing him to drop her as he lept between buildings. 

Don was so focused on holding on to the wiggling girl that he missed his landing causing them to roll head over heals across her rooftop. She opened her eyes and flopped her mess of curls out of her face, the tumbling had landed Donnie on his shell and she was belly down on his plastron. Donnie raised his head and glared at the girl, “what’s your problem” he growled. “I'm tickalish,” she panted. Don's head fell back as he huffedin frustration, then he grinned as he dug his fingers into her sides, she squealed and rolled off of him swatting at his hands. “Damnit Donnie! You're such an ass!”


	13. Chapter 13

Mikey stepped out of her bathroom holding her little gray ball of fluff, “He's good Babe! Awww did you miss me kitty!” Mikey coed as the cat purred and rubbed against his snout. Rae just smiled and shook her head as she looked over the mess her place was still in, she headed for her library and managed to find some paper and a pen, then proceed to the kitchen bar where she began writing down her to do list for the day. She stopped and looked up searching for the clock that used to hang in her living room, seeing the ornate piece laying busted on the floor, she asked if anyone had the time. “6:12” Donnie quickly answered, Rea turned a corner of her mouth to the side and held up her paper, ‘it'll be at least 3 more hours before I can do any of this' she thought to her self. In her mission to begin putting her life back together she had almost forgotten the 4 turtles standing around awkwardly in her home, at least until Leo reminded her that they needed to be heading back underground. She laid her paper on the bar, a touch of sadness pulled at her heart, “is that it? Will I ever see ya'll again?” Donnie smiled, “yes, I will swing by around 8 tonight to pick you up.” 

Rae drew back, “Do we have a date?”

Donnie's stumbled over his words as his cheeks began to turn a dark burgundy, “N….No but we agreed that you would stay at the lair until you got things repaired here.” 

RL: ah, well if everything goes accordingly I hope to have things clean enough that I will at least be able to sleep here tonight. I'll clean what I can until 9 then I will Make the necessary calls, insurance, repair man, clean up crew etc, and once I'm done with that I’m gonna hit the shops to replace all this!”

L: well let’s just see how things go, but one of us WILL check in with you tonight. 

Rae sighed and shook her head, she knew there wasn't any point in arguing with the leader. The boys said their goodbyes, and Mikey cashed in on some extra snuggles from Gary, before heading out the window. She waved as she watched them slip through the small opening with ease, and then turned to finally face the disaster that was her appartment.

April's clothes seemed to be getting tighter the more she wore them, so she headed for the pile of shredded clothes in her bedroom floor. She dug until she found a pair of sweat pants that were intact from the knee up and a tank top that was fairly untouched. She cut the pants off into shorts and slipped the tank top on, she looked in the mirror, it wasn't the most fashionable look but it was comfortable and it would work for just cleaning around the house, ‘cut the pants off a little too short' she thought as she tugged them away from her skin.

Rae spent the morning cleaning and sorting through the mess, she did manage to find a few casual dresses that were in one piece as well as a few pairs of shoes, enough for her to have a decent outfit to go shopping in. After making the necessary calls she slipped into a simple lavender dress, and flats before heading out to replace nearly everything in her home. 

She tossed her new handbag onto the counter and plopped down on the bar stool. She was beat, she liked shopping just as good as the next girl, but she hated lugging all of the bags around. Thank God for Mr. Hudley, her door man, he was more than happy to unload her things from the cab and bring them to her appartment, and she was sure to show her gratitude with a hearty tip. She pulled her new cell phone from her bag and checked the time, 7:55 Donnie should be here any minute. She sorted through the bags of clothing, choosing a pair of conservative striped pajamas, she had picked out especially for spending the night at the lair, as well as some things she would need to put herself together in the morning. 

She stood at her kitchen bar opening packages of makeup when Gary hopped off the bar and trotted to the window, he sat and watched the glass tentatively as his head moved side to side. Rae shoved the makeup into a travel bag, then made her way to the window, she smiled as she saw a large feather move around the frame of her window stopping and shaking every so often. She picked Gary up and cracked the window, the feather slipped in through the narrow opening and wiggled, the wide eyed feline tapped at it with a paw at first, the snatched it up and jumped from her arms to go play with his newly captured prey.   
The window slid open as Donnie made his way in, Rae stepped to the side and watched as her little cat rolled and tussled on the floor with his new toy. “I thought he'd like that.” Donnie smiled, “found it on the way here I believe it belongs to a Bubo virginianus,” he continued, pushing his glasses up and smiling sheepishly at the girl. Rae rolled her eyes, “Owl, Donnie… normal people call it an owl.” Donnie was surprised that she understood his nerd lingo, he was impressed, but disappointed he wasn't able to show off his superior intalect. He tried to save his dignity, “are you a bird enthusiast?” Rae scrunched her face, “Lord no… PhD in Biology, remember I'm the ‘chick that plugged ya'll up' as Mikey said.” Donnie drew back and decided to change the subject, sensing her irritation of the memory. 

“Looks like you've had a productive day" he said looking around the apartment, mainly eyeing the large pile of shopping bags in the living room. She breathed a tired sigh, “yeah as much as I could. The cleaners won’t be able to come till tomorrow afternoon and the contractor said it'll be sometime next week before he can come fix my door and patch the holes in the walls.” She looked up at the purple clad genius, “looks like you may be stuck with me a while, ya'll sure you don't mind me staying at the lair?” Donnie smiled at the thought of being ‘stuck’ with the lovely blonde for a longer period of time than expected. “One thing though, do we have to slide through the sewer water, cause I have to go to work tomorrow night and I CAN NOT show up smelling like a port a potty.” Donnie chuckled at her curt attitude, “there is a much dryer route but it requires a lot of walking… and it’s not as fun.” He replied with a grin. She grinned back, “that may be the best option, don't want to ruin my cute little dress” she said with her arms out and giving a little spin. Her cute display made Donnie's heart warm, “you look good in purple… almost as good as me.” He puffed up and jabbed a thumb to his chest with a grin. She giggled, flipped her golden waves and looked at him over her shoulder, “that may be but just wait till you see me black.” His stroak of boldness faded as she winked at him through her stray curls, his knees felt weak and he decided it was time to head out before he was reduced to a puddle on her floor. He swallowed hard, “we should probably go, they'll be waiting for me to go on patrol.” 

She walked over and sat on her knees amongst the pile of shopping bags. She began to choose her clothes and threw them into a large plastic bag, she moved to the makeup pouch still laying on the bar and tossed it into the larger bag, then she zipped the bag and pulled the strap over her shoulder. She reached down to pet Gary but he swatted playfully at her defending what was left of the feather, she smiled and left him to his game. With that she stepped up to the turtle, “well I'm ready if your ready,” she stammered trying to hid her sudden nervousness. Donnie had been looking forward to this moment all day, he was careful not to let his eager hands move to fast as he scooped the girl up effortlessly and headed out of the window.


	14. Chapter 14

The silence was long and uncomfortable as Donnie and Rae walked down the maze of tunnels to the lair. Rae tried to think of something to break the awkwardness between them but she was too tired to think of a reasonable subject, so she began to hum, Donnie began to loosen up as he listened to the melody echoing off the tunnel walls. He adjusted her bag, that he had insisted on carrying, “So… you said you had to go to work tomorrow, where do you work?” “Divin, fenm, e chan” Donnie wasn't sure if she was answering his question or just mumbling to herself.

D: what?

RL: Divin, fenm, e chan… its creole it means wine, women and song.

Donnie thought for a moment, “I've studied creole and that doesn't sound anyth… “

RL: Haitian creole?

D: well yes

Rae chuckled and grinned at the self proclaimed genius. “its not Haitian creole, its Louisiana creole they're completely different languages. Ones based on Latin and the other is a hodgepodge of many languages, but mostly French… it’s all about the accent.” 

Donnie set his jaw, he didn't like being outwitted or coming across as ignorant, but it seemed to be a regular occurrence when he was in Rae's company, but despite his irritation he pressed on, “is that the source of your accent?”

RL: Lord no Honey, I'm a Carolina girl, I dated a Louisiana man last summer when me and my girls were running the rodeo circuits. I thought the language was sexy and as any man would he used it to his advantage. – her cheeks warmed and her body tingling as she silently recalled what a skilled lover the man was. 

Donnie could sence an increase in her estrogen levels, he made a mental note to research the language at his earliest convenience.

“Hey! Baby Doll!” Mikey exclaimed arms open wide, as they entered the lair. Rae smiled from ear to ear, she couldn't help it, Mikey reminded her so much of her own baby brother that she loved so dearly and missed so much. She threw her arms up as the turtle in orange wrapped his arms around her and spun in circles dramatically, after he had put her feet back on the ground he stepped back to admire her dress. “whoa… Baby Doll you look, AMAZING!” Mikey announced with wide eyes. He bowed placing a feather like kiss on the back of her had, Rae couldn't help but to blush and giggle a little. “My lovely Rae, I know we've only known each other for a short time but I would be honored if you would be my girl for the evening.” Poor Mikey, even though he had rehearsed his line all day his voice still cracked with nervousness, he hoped she hadn't noticed. “My, my” Rea placed a hand to her chest and batted her eyelashes, “ya'll don't hesitate around here do you?” Mikey just looked up and grinned at his blonde beauty, as she took his hand and pulled him to an upright position. “I would love to be you date, but I'm already spoaken for.” Mikey’s cocked an eyebrow as she pointed over her shoulder at his tall older brother. “Donnie? But, but…” She held a hand up, “Now he showed up promptly to pick me up, offered to carry my things and brought my Gary Baby a gift, now what kind of a lady would I be if I just kicked him to the curb for a stud like you.” She smirked playfully.

Donnie shifted uncomfortably behind her, “N…no Rae your not committed to my company in any way I…I was just going to head to the lab” “Yeah Babe, you don't want to go in there, just a bunch of boring science stuff. I got dinner waiting and we can chill on the couch and play what ever game you want, just got a new controller you can be the first to use it!”

Rae put a hand to her growling stomach, she was hungry. “I tell you what Mikey, I'm not much of a gamer but I would be happy to be your dinner date as long as I can visit Donnie in his lab afterwards.” Rae looked over her shoulder to see if Donnie approved of her plan, he just shrugged and walked past her and Mikey toward their small kitchen. Mikey decided he'd take what he could get and held an arm out for Rae to take before he escorted her to the dining table.

Raph sat at the table slurping up his lo mein while Leo propped against the counter picking the vegetables out of his bowl with his chopsticks. Raph pointed at Mikey as he talked away to the girl hanging on his arm, “looks like numbnuts got his date.” Leo just shook his head still working diligently at his meal. Donnie sat Rae's bag in the living room and went into the kitchen to dip out some supper for himself, he sat down at the table and watched Mikey escort Rae to a smaller separate table with a few candies flickering in the center.  
Mikey sat the girl at his special table then hurried over to the kitchen, filling two bowls and rushing back to serve the girl. Donnie glared at the scene his little brother was making over the girl, Raph saw his brother’s irritation as he slurped up another mouthful of noodles.

R: jealous?

Donnie blew in amusement, “hardly, more like embarrassed.”

Leo looked up from his work, “you sure about that Don? you know you'd love to have a date with a pretty girl like her.” 

D: and you wouldn't? It’s not like we have women roaming through here on a regular basis. She's the only human girl who hasn't fainted the first time she saw us.

L: What about April?

D: April doesn't count, besides she's with Casey and she DID faint the first time she saw us because you and Mikey scared the hell out of her. – Donnie set his chopsticks on the table and pushed his bowl away, he was hungry but the food tasted odd. 

Rae looked over shoulder as she heard Donnie get up from the table and head for his lab, she could tell he wasn't happy but the way he blatantly tossed his dishes into the sink. Mikey smiled “he’s just jealous that I had the guts to ask you out and you actually said yes!” Rae sighed and thought for a moment, ‘Mikey’s such a sweetheart but…’ “Come on Baby Doll you haven't touched your shrimp and noodles, I made it just for you! I tried to make shrimp and grits but I couldn't get the grits to thicken up, then they were too thick…” Rae smiled and took a bite of her supper as she listened to Mikey ramble on, it was good, or she was hungrier than she thought. She was almost halfway through her bowl when she felt her stomach begin to churn, she laid her chopsticks down and pushed her bowl away, holding a hand to her belly it was bloated with gas. “you ok baby doll? You look a little green.” Mikey asked after swallowing a mouthful of shrimp and vegetables. “I think I just ate too much, too fast" Mikey looked at her half empty bowl and his giddy expression fell to disappointment, “you don’t like it do you?” “No! No! I did I'm just tired Hun, I think I’m ready to curl up on my pjs, mind if I cut our date short and catch a shower?” she could tell Mikey was upset but being the super nice guy he was he let her go without protest. 

Rae stayed in the shower as long as she could, she grimaced at the awful sounds and smells that were escaping her body as a result of Mikey's cooking. She hoped she could hide out in the shower until her body had recovered but when she heard Raph beating on the door she knew her time was up. 

“Damnit Rae hurry up!” the giant turtle roared through the bathroom door. 

“I'm coming! Just let me throw my stuff in my bag!”

“are you dressed!?” 

“yeaahh…?”

Raph almost sent Rae screaming to the ceiling when the blew through the door and headed for the toilet. “Oh Good Lord!” Rae cried as she covered her face trying to block out the image and God awful odor, she ran into the hall gaging and gasping for air. 

Rae walked down the hall wondering what the hell had just happened to her, she knew these guys for less then 3 days and one of them just tried to shit on her. ‘was that some kind of ‘welcome to the family initiation what the fuck?’

She stepped down out of the hall and into the living room, the air was thick it almost made her gag, Mikey sat on the couch absorbed in a game and Leo was reclined in the chair reading, neither paid her any mind. She held a hand over her nose and headed for Donnie's lab. 

Rae tapped on the open door as to announce her entry, Donnie sat with his back to her, he waved over his shoulder but never deterred from his work. She eased in and found an empty space on a table next to a wall just big enough for her to sit. She hopped up on the cold metal table and leaned back against the concrete wall. She studied the various gadgets and inventions that were scattered throughout the space, she was impressed but then again she was far from technologically inclined so it really didn't take much to wow her in the field. She carefully moved some of the items around her so that she could stretch her legs out on the table. She sat with her ankles and her arms crossed as she leaned against the wall. She had just began to doze off when she heard the wheels Donnie’s chair squeak as he turned around. Donnie raised a brow, “aren't you going to ask me what I'm doing?” Rae just hummed a no as she sat with her head back and her eyes closed. Donnie's heart fell slightly, ‘she obviously isn't interested in me or my work.’ But she spoak up as if she could feel his disappointment, “ I figured if you wanted me to know you'd tell me.”  
This was strange to share company with someone who didn't question his every move, he kind of liked it. He sat back in his chair and pushed his glasses up on his face, “well if your interested I was actually documenting your reaction to the mutagen.” 

Rae opened her eyes and raised her head, “I assume you have some questions?” 

Yes! As a matter of fact, have you experienced and interesting changes or unusual abilities?

She shook her head, “Nope same old, same old"  
“If you do notice anything I want you to let me know right away” Donnie insisted.

Yes Daddy…

Don rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair, “So what time do you have to go to work tomorrow?”

I don't go on till 10, but I like to get there an hour early

You need to be in bed if your going to be at work by 9 in the morning

Rae laughed, “oh no Honey, 9 tomorrow night.”  
Donnie narrowed his eyes, “what do you do at this place?”

Entertainment, in fact I'm the headliner for this whole month, ya'll should come tomorrow. There's a balcony that they never use, you can slip in the window and watch the show. 

What kind of entertainment? 

You sound like my father… Don't worry it doesn't involve poles or nudity but it is for adults only. 

Donnie shook his head as he rolled back to his desk, he cussed when he heard his chair hit the instrument propped up against the leg of the table. He picked up the guitar and looked over it carefully. Rae sat up and pointed at the wooden box, “Do you play.” Donnie shook his head as he sat the guitar in his lap, “No, I've been meaning to learn but I haven't had the time.” Rae held a hand out, “May I?” Donnie stood and placed it in the girl's outstretched hand. She sat it in her lap and plucked at the strings, “oh mercy it needs to be tuned badly” She said as she scrunched her face to the sounds. Donnie watched as she turned the tuning pegs and pulled at the strings until she was satisfied with the sound. Donnie smiled as her fingers moved over the neck and strings with ease, “know any songs?"

Rae smiled warmly, “a few would the gentleman in the audience like to make a request"

Donnie's smile widened, “only if you don't mind ma'am”

Rae's smile turned to a mischievous grin, “Darlin, I've got nothing better to do.”

Her short picks turned to long strokes as her fingers found their place on the guitar’s neck with ease. It was an upbeat tune, and when she opened her mouth she let it all out. Donnie knew had a musical talent but this was a surprise, he listened as she laid out a bluesy backcountry melody about a young mischievous Mississippi girl. Her raspy southern twang was the soul of the song as she let it flow from her grinning lips. Donnie noticed movement in the corner of his eye, he looked over to see Leo and Mikey standing in the doorway of the lab. Leo leaned on the wall with his arms crossed and a slight grin painted on his face while Mikey had hopped onto one of the tables and sat with his legs swinging to the beat. Rae's voice carried through the tunnels of the sewer, drawing out Master Splinter who rarely set foot in Donnie's lab.

Rae opened her eyes as she strummed the last cord and was surprised to see such an audience. Everyone was silent at first, but then Mikey threw his arms up as he exclaimed, “Damn Baby Doll! You're a freaking rock star!” Rae cheeks burst into flames as she smiled shyly, she sat up to hand Donnie's guitar back and her breath hung for a second when he accidentally wrapped his hand around hers. 

The mini performance seemed to remedy their groaning stomachs, and everyone cheerfully agreed to Mikey's suggestion to a movie before bed. Rae found her a place on the end of the couch as Mikey dove into the middle shoving Donnie to the other end, Leo stretched out in the oversized recliner, and Raph took the chair on the other side of the couch. Mikey got up and returned with a fresh bowl of popcorn which no one cared for, “we've had enough of your cooking for tonight.” Raph groaned with a hand on his still churning belly. They were about half way through the movie when it happened.

It slipped right out the last little remnant of her stomach ache, it was small and she hoped no one would notice, but being the boys they were, there was no hiding it. At first they just looked around not sure who had done it, not one of them thought to accuse the girl, she was a girl! Cute little blondes don’t pass gas, so Mikey was blamed as always and everyone went back to the movie. Rae breathed a sigh of relief and slid down further folding her arms on the armrest and laying her chin on her wrists. She was almost asleep when her stomach rumbled and her body let out the faintest sound, causing her eyes to pop open.  
“Awwww jeez Mikey really!?” Donnie groaned as he pushed his little brother off the couch, “Dude! I swear it wasn't me!” Donnie rolled his eyes dramatically, “well then who was it? It came from over here.” Mikey narrowed his eyes as he turned his head to look at Rae. She panicked and slapped the armrest in front of her, everyone on watched as she flicked the invisible insect off the couch. Leo leaned up in his recliner, “what was that?” Rae struggled to hold a steady face, “barking spider" Raph grinned and pushed his toothpick to the corner of his mouth, “a what?”

RL: A barking spider 

D: Never heard of such a thing, what’s its scientific n…

RL: Selenocosmia stirlingi

Mikey grinned wildly as he tried to hold it together, in an effort to save the girl he suggested that they return their attention to the movie. Rae buried her face in the back of her folded hands and uttered a silent prayer that it wouldn't happen again. 

The evening went on without anymore digestive hiccups, and it was soon bed time. Rae stretched and asked if she could borrow a few blankets and pillows, Mikey scrunched his face up, “What for? You snugglin with me tonight Baby Doll.” Rae wasn't too sure about sleeping with Mikey he seemed like the type that would sneak a groap the second she nodded off. “I don't think that’s a good idea, I'd hate to mess things up between us Hun.” Donnie stood up and stretched grunting as his shoulders popped, “well your not sleeping on the couch it gets pretty cold in here at night.” Rae huffed and looked at the four turtles waiting for someone to either over rule Donnie or offer a solution. Leo just threw a hand up as he dismissed himself from the situation and headed for bed, leaving her staring at Raph hoping he would offer his nest. Raph looked at the girl's sad puppy dog eyes, and looked at his lanky brother. He knew Donnie had a thing for the girl and would never admit it, ‘maybe if he got jealous enough he'd suck it up and make a move.’ Raph thought as he chewed on his toothpick. “Alright kid you can bunk with me tonight, I guess I owe you one for earlier.” Rae smiled gratefully and then shuddered as she remembered Raph barging in to the bathroom, she hoped his stomach was settled.

Donnie laid in his nest and watched with narrowed eyes as Rae made herself comfortable under Raph's red blanket, once she was situated the giant turtle rolled in causing her to jump and squeak as she felt the nest give under his weight. Once everyone was settled Leo reached over and pulled the string on the old floor lamp bathing the bed room in total darkness. Rae hunkered down under the heavy knitted blanket and listened as the turtles eased off to sleep. 

Raph had just dosed off when she heard it whistle through the covers its sounded like an assault rifle under the sheets. She popped up and slapped the massive turtle’s shell, “Oh my God! What the hell Raph.” Raph chuckled, “its them barking spiders kid” as another round of fire rolled out from under the covers. Rae gagged and covered her face, “Barking spiders my ass! You got some fuckin howling tarantulas up in here! Get out of this bed and go wipe your ass fool!”  
Mikey and Don howled with laughter, even Leo was wiping tears from his eyes. “Watch out kid here comes another…” “Oh my God!!!!” Rae stumbled out of Raph’s nest and threw her red pillow at the laughing behemoth, she turned and glared at the other three as she made her way to Donnie, “Move over Damnit.” She huffed as he continued to snort with laughter. Donnie wiped his eyes and slid over as Rae flopped down on the side of his bed. Rae laid under Don's purple blanket and fumed as she listened to the brothers sporadic giggles as they slowly nodded off to sleep. 

She groaned as Donnie began to snore, Rae rolled over to find him laying flat on his shell, she pushed against his arm hoping he would reposition and stop the horrid sound but he never moved. Rae slid over to him and patted his chest, “Donnie your snoring.” She whispered, but he still didn't move. She sighed in frustration and sat up leaning over him she patted his cheek firmly, “Damnit Donnie stop snoring!” Donnie shuffled under the covers and stretched his arms out before wrapping them around her and rolling over, dragging her with him as he went. “Wait Donnie! NO!NO!NO! N…” She laid with her face smashed into his chest and her arms pressed against her sides. He had her in an iron grip, she sighed blowing a curl out of her face, ‘well at least I'm warm, and he stopped snoring.’ She thought as she looked up at him, a loud nasally rumble rolled out of his mouth, her head fell against his hard plastron in defeat, “Damnit Donnie.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://youtu.be/-Z-XvUU83rk 
> 
> Rae's little tune she sang in the lab ;)


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's all late night ramblings but I was crazy tired with this one, but it's got some little moments that will be important later ;)

Donnie breathed in the fresh scent of jasmine as he lay in bed half asleep, he could feel the girl's warm body pressed against his plastron, ‘she must have gotten cold during the night,’ he thought as he savored every inch of her against him. He was laying on his side with one arm under his head and another on the girl's back, while she laid snuggled into him with her hands folded at her face. He soaked up every second he could, he knew it wouldn't last forever, his mind drifted off but instead of the usual thoughts of training, research, and inventions he wondered what it would be like to wake up every morning like this wrapped up with someone he loved. Loved!? Could he really have such a strong emotion for someone he hardly knew? Would she ever be able to feel the same about him? He sighed knowing it to be very unlikely, she was gorgeous, smart and talented. She could have any man she wanted, what could ever make her want to be with an almost 7 foot turtle? 

She began to stir just as his thoughts began to depress him, his mind turned to how she would react to waking up in their current position. He thought about quickly rolling away from her and pretending nothing had happened, but what if she did like it? She hummed as she slowly began to open her eyes, he pulled her close and rubbed his hand on her back, hoping for the best. Rae wasn't surprised at how close she was to Don when she woke, she remembered how she had fallen asleep, but she was stunned at how natural it felt. She could feel the breath in his chest, and hear the steady rhythm of his heart, his touch was warm and comforting. She decided to play possum and enjoy the comfort for a few extra minutes, she worried a little about what this could turn into if she wasn't careful, he was a different species after all, and she knew all to well that there was more to a relationship than bedtime cuddles and conversations. Eventually he would want a physical relationship, and the thought of sleeping with a giant turtle was almost more than she could handle, she shuddered at the thought. Donnie felt her body shiver, he exhaled and leaned away from her, she looked up to meet his amber gaze, a sleepy smile danced in her eyes. He was handsome, in his own nerdy turtley way.

Don smiled, relieved she wasn't upset with being so close to him, “Did you get cold last night?”  
Rae giggled slightly, “you don't remember do you?”  
Donnie's eyes widened with a touch of panic as he tried to recall what she meant. 

“You were snoring, I tried to wake you but you took me hostage. You've had me wrapped up like this all night.”  
He blushed fiercely as he loosened his grip on the girl, his nerves began to get the better of him and he swallowed hard before squeaking out, “oh…uh…sorry.”  
Rae grinned mischievously, “for the snoring or the insistent snuggles?”

Leo rolled out of his nest and bumped Don's shell as he walked by, “Come on man, we need to get ready for morning training.” Oh thank Goodness, Donnie thought, he knew Rae was setting him up and it was too early in the morning for him to fall flat on his face, even if it was metaphorically. 

Rae watched as Don stood and grabbed his mask and glasses before heading to the bathroom to wash up, she rolled on to her back and stretched with a groan. She squeaked when she saw Mikey's face lean over her with a huge smile, “Good morning my sleeping beauty! How about some breakfast?” Rae screamed internally as she recalled the embarrassment and torture from the night before. She smiled and flipped the tails of Mikey's mask up into his face, “How about I make breakfast, Darlin” 

Rae looked through the cabinets and fridge taking inventory of what ingredients were available, sausage, butter, milk, flour, eggs, vinegar. She smiled as she began to look for a skillet. She was rooting around under a lower cabinet when Raph slapped the counter over her head, she jumped hitting her head on the inside of the cabinet. She looked down to see his huge feet standing next to her, “Damnit Raph you such an ass” she grumbled as she went back to her searching. “What cha lookin for kid" “A skillet, ya'll got one?” Raph stepped away for a moment returning with a large iron pan, he slammed it down on the counter over Rae's head. Rae cussed and emerged from under the cabinet rubbing the back of her head, Raph grinned, “This what you lookin for?” She snatched the heavy pan away from him and slapped him in the arm with it. “your lucky if I don't spit in your food.” She snarled still rubbing the back of her head. 

Rae rolled the sausage into the pan then looked for the coffee maker, she pulled the pot from the maker the glass was almost black. Donnie came into the kitchen, as he was tying his mask, he slipped his glasses on and looked at the girl studying the pot. “Are you going to make coffee or just stare at it all morning?” “when was the last time you washed it?” she asked with a grimace. Donnie was slightly offended by the question, “we wash it every afternoon, we're not uncivilized.” She held the pot up and looked at the coffee grounds stuck at the bottom, “what do you wash it with? Good intentions?” “The glass is just stained, we… well I go through a lot of coffee, but I assure you it's as clean as they come.” She pursed her lips and pulled an ice tray from the freezer, she filled the pot full of ice and opened the salt shaker. Donnie watched disapprovingly as she poured a hefty amount of salt over the ice, she let it sit as she went to tend to the sausage, she returned and swirled the ice around the glass pot gently then pored it into the sink. After a little soap and hot water she held up a shiny clear coffee pot, Donnie felt like an idiot again, Rae just smiled and proceeded to make coffee in the crystal clear pot. 

Don watched as Rae measured out her ingredients and poured them in a large mixing bowl, she pulled her hair back with a band and began to work the dough with her hands, adding the milk as needed. She scattered some flour on the surface of the counter and rolled the dough out, she continued to work the dough until she was satisfied with its thickness and texture, she blew a curl from her face and brushed the flour from her hands as she looked at Don, “got a cup?” Donnie opened a cabinet and held out a drinking glass, Rae smiled and pointed to the dough, “you cut the biscuits and I'll make the gravy.” Donnie wasn't too sure about this, sure he was a tech wiz but working in the kitchen was a whole other ball of wax, he was definitely no cook. Rae noticed his hesitation, and slipped over to demonstrate, “See nothing too it!” she smiled as she handed him the flour covered glass. Donnie took the glass and set to work, doing just as she had. “My, my it smells good in here.” Splinter stepped into the kitchen with a smile, “And look at that, Donatello I didn't know you were interested in the culinary arts.” Donnie just shook his head as his Master chuckled while reaching for a coffee cup. Rae stepped away from the stove to fill Splinter’s cup, he thanked her with a smile and left the kitchen for a comfortable chair in the living room. Rae pulled two mugs from the cabinet and poured a cup for Donnie and herself, she watched as he slid the trays of biscuits into the oven and set the timer to her specifications. Rae handed Donnie his cup and they both stood propping on the counter as the dark liquid warmed them through and through.

He looked at the girl standing in front of him, she was covered in flour, without a drop of makeup, and her wild curls refused to stay tied back allowing several strays to hang around her face. He was amazed at how stunning she was to him, even in her messy domestic simplicity. He grinned over his coffee cup, “I hate to admit it but the coffee does taste better.” She smiled at his compliment, “just wait until you taste my biscuits.” Donnie hid behind his cup as his cheeks burned with the lewd thought that ran through his mind.

“Hey kid, how about another round?

Raph you’ve had enough! You've ate almost half a pan of biscuits! 

That's not much, load me up!

Raph a pan holds 24 biscuits! Jeez it’s a good thing I made two!

Awww Baby Doll, these are amazing! 

Rae smiled as she took the hot biscuit from Mikey and spread a little butter and jelly in the center before folding it back together. Mikey shoved the biscuit into his mouth and slid down in his chair as his taste buds reduced him to putty. Rae looked over at Leo, who sat back in his chair rubbing his full stomach, “and how many have you had?” she asked the leader with a raised brow. “I lost count around nine.” He groaned. Rae rolled her eyes as she picked up his plate and set it in the sink. She grinned as she watched Donnie mopping his plate with a gravy soaked biscuit, even Splinter had over Indulged in the rich home cooked meal leaving him stretched out in the recliner half asleep. It warmed her heart to see the guys full and happy, it had been a long time since she had cooked for a crowd of boys. 

Donnie looked up from his plate as he licked his fingers, he saw Rae clearing his brother's dishes from the table, they had all filled their bellies and were spread throughout the lair digesting their rich breakfast. He stood and set his dish in the sink as Rae was filling the basin with hot water and dish soap. She stepped in front of him pushing him away from the sink, he pursued his lips, “at least let me dry.” Rae glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and handed him a clean dish covered in suds, “you can rinse too.” She smiled.

Donnie stood back drying his hands, he looked at the clean dishes and noticed there was the usual amount, five, he looked over at the girl wiping the table clean, his heart warmed as she blew a stray curl from her face. He stepped to the side as she walked over and returned the cloth to the sink, she looked up at the turtle who was unintentionally staring. A grin pulled at the corner of her mouth, “what?” Her voice snapped him from his trance, he blinked as stammered for his words, “Ho…. How many biscuits did you eat?” Rae turned and leaned against the sink brushing the flour from her stripped pajamas purposely looking away from Don, “Enough.” Her stomach groaned loudly, she looked up realizing her secret was out, Don's expression fell “you didn't eat anything did you?” Rae tried to offer a reassuring smile, but Donnie wasn't satisfied, before he could say anything else Master Splinter called him for their morning training. Rae waved Don away as she sipped her coffee hoping he would let his concerns go, he just shook his head as he turned to accompany his brothers. 

As he joined his brothers in the dojo awaiting their Master he couldn't shake the girl from his mind. Mikey nudged him with a grin, “so when you gonna make a move brah?” Donnie shook his head as he stared at the floor, Michelangelo could see his older brother was troubled, “Dude what’s the problem? She's totally into you.” Donnie smirked disapprovingly, “I doubt that, the probability that…” “No dude, no, this isn't about what’s in your head, you gotta go with what's in your heart.” “I haven't even known her a week Mikey. Besides I know nothing about her family, where shes from or…” “Dude! That’s what dates are for! So you can get to know each other.” Donnie looked at his baby brother with wide curious eyes, “you engaged in a ‘date' with her, what did you find out?” Donnie asked almost begging for information, but before Mikey could answer Splinter entered the dojo and called them to attention to begin their training.

Rae stood in front of the bathroom mirror trying to get her hair under control, she finally gave up and pulled it back with a hair tie as always. “ I swear I'm gonna cut this mess, I look like fucking alpaca” she mumbled as she dug through her make up bag. Her look was simple, a long sleeve v neck tee and a pair of dark boot cut Jean’s and her favorite pair of boots, a touch of eye shadow, mascara and lip gloss and she was ready to go. She heard the boys training as she walked into the living room, she knew she hadn't been invited but her curiosity got the better of her and she eased into the dojo trying her best not to interrupt the session. She peaked around the corner of a cinder block wall just as Donnie landed Raph on his shell, “you squirrelly little shit,” Raph huffed as he leaped to his feet only to be thrown on his plastron as Donnie's staff swiftly took his ankles out from under him. Splinter held his hand up, silently ending their session, Don offered Raph a hand, and then they both bowed to their sensei and then to each other. Splinter motioned for Mikey and Leo to join their brothers, the four stood at attention in front of their master, Splinter's ear flicked to the side, “Miss. Black, you are welcome to join our training if you would like.” Rae was embarrassed she had been caught snooping, and offered an apology as she slipped from her hiding place. Splinter held a hand up, “It is alright my child, you are welcome to observe their training. Perhaps your presence will encourage my sons to up their game as they say.” Splinter glanced over his sons with a sly expression, holding Donnie's gaze for a second longer then the rest, they shot nervous glances between each other knowing all to well their father had a card hidden up his sleeve.   
Splinter held a hand out inviting the girl to stand beside him, once she was at her place he waved a hand in front of his sons, “My child look at my sons and tell me what you see.” Rae was confused, she looked as the rat, “collectively or individually?” the rat thought for a moment then smiled, “both.” Rae thought as her eyes moved over the four turtles, she wouldn't dare say the obvious, she knew they were aware of the biological makeup, instead she focused on their personalities. She considered the qualities each turtle had, and as she ran the list through her mind she remembered something her father had told her brothers when they were entering their adolescence. 

Her eyes narrowed with thought, she exhaled, “Men. I see four good men.” The brothers expressions changed to a mixture of shock and disbelief as Rae continued, “individually… I'm not sure… “ Rae confessed as she bit her bottom lip in thought. Splinter thanked the girl and dismissed his sons for their morning meditation.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's short but I think you'll like it. (You may need a tissue though) :*

Rae sat with her feet tucked up in Don's office chair as she messed with her phone, “Damn it” she huffed “I hate getting a new phone, it takes me forever to get all my crap straight.” Donnie smirked as he turned the screwdriver opening the panel on his staff, “technology really isn't your thing is it?” Rae spun the chair around so she could see the tall genius she twisted her mouth to the side and shook her head as her finger moved across her phone.

Her head hit the back of the chair as she groaned in defeat, Donnie looked up from his work, “what are you attempting to do?” “I'm trying log into the deer camera at dad's.” Donnie sat his staff and tool on the table behind him and took the phone from the girl, she explained how it was ‘supposed’ to work but obviously she wasn't doing something right. Donnie leaned against the table and fiddled with the phone, “is this it?” he asked holding the phone out so she could see the screen, “Oh my gosh!” she exclaimed with her mouth hanging open, Donnie perked up as an accomplished smile spread on his face. The girl took the phone and looked at the time, 4:47, she squinted at the screen, “one day I will figure put how to put this my TV so I can really see something.” Donnie's smile widened as he stepped over to his computer cave, his fingers tapped across the keys and his mouse clicked rapidly, Rae paid him no mind as she concentrated on the small phone screen, “Is this better?”

Rae turned to see the image from her phone spread across several screens creating one large display, her mouth fell open as she slipped out of the chair and made her way to the monitors, she laid her hands in front of the keyboard and leaned in focusing on a specific screen. “What time is it?” she asked her eyes never wavering, “4:56” Donnie leaned in to see what was so interesting to her, his eyes weren't the best and the dirty camera lens made it all the more difficult to see, but he was able to make out a grassy meadow with a large willow tree to the left, under the tree were three stones, they looked like grave markers.

Donnie wondered why she was so focused on such a gloomy sight, “what is this Rae?” The girl's attention to the scene never faltered as she pointed to the stones starting from the right and moving to the left, “Momma, Baby Nicolas, and my oldest brother Joe.” Don's heart sank as he realized he was looking at her family, but he was at a loss as to why this was so fascinating to her, he slid the chair over for her to sit in, she turned only for a second to flash a grateful smile. As she turned back to the screen they saw an old pick up pull in to view on the right, Rae bit her lip as her eyes began to water. A tall older man dressed in Jean’s, boots and a tee shirt stepped out of the old dodge, he stood and looked at the stones for a minute, then reached in the bed of the truck and pulled out a small metal pale full of wild flowers. He made his way to the stones and kneeled to exchange their wilted flowers for the fresh ones, taking time to bow his head at each. Once he was finished he strode back to the truck and switched the pale for a guitar, and made his way back to her Mother's stone. 

Donnie looked at Rae curiously, she looked at him and smiled as a tear slipped down her cheek, “Today's Momma and Daddy's anniversary.” She whispered as she looked back at the screen. The man sat down beside her Mother's marker and leaned against the stone with the guitar in his lap, Donnie watched as his fingers began to play at the strings gently. “Does the camera have a microphone?” Rae just shook her head, Donnie pursed his lips as he looked back at the screen, Rae watched her father's hands move over the strings, she began to sing just as he did, she knew the song by heart he had played for her Mother every year on June 16th just as he did the day they were married. It was a slow ballad, one that professed his love and gratitude for how he was able to have the woman in his life, even though their time together was much too short. 0Again Rae's voice carried through the tunnels, drawing the rest of Donnie's family to their side. Donnie looked at the girl as she sang along with the man on the screen, tears rolled down her cheeks but her expression wasn't of sadness or heartache, but admiration and love.

Once her father had strummed the last cord, he laid the guitar on the ground next to him and placed his face in his hands. Rae looked away from the screen for the first time since Donnie had pulled the image up, she couldn't bare to see her father cry. The others watched as the man’s shoulders began to tremble as he lost his composure, their heart ached for the man and his daughter who still loved the woman laying under the cold marble slab. Rae looked at Donnie for only a second before she squeezed his hand in a silent show of gratitude, she turned in her chair and made her way past the others. She stopped as she tried to slip past Leo, he had reached out and taken her hand, she looked up at his glassy eyes, “I'm sorry” the leader whispered with a quivering lip. Rae offered a broken smile as one last tear slipped down her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://youtu.be/cyo8D0UuXIQ
> 
> *Momma & Daddy's Song*


	17. Chapter 17

Donnie sat in his chair with his bo staff in his lap trying to concentrate on his work, he reworked the wires in an attempt to get the electric stunners on each end to work properly. He pressed two wires together, they arched and the electricity snapped at his fingers he jumped in surprise and cussed, shaking the pain from his hands. He tossed it on the table in front of him, the staff landed on the large button causing it to suddenly extend taking out everything in its path, knocking several of his projects onto the unforgiving concrete floor. His hand landed on his face, ‘what the fuck Donnie, how could you be so clumsy’ he thought as he listened to his newest invention buzz and tick as it lay broken on the floor. He decided to leave his lab until he got his head back together, and before he unintentionally set the whole place on fire. 

Donnie plopped down on the couch beside Mikey, who was leaning on the armrest deep in thought, Mikey didn't acknowledge his brother's presence. Donnie looked at the TV, the intro to one of Mikey's games played over and over, this was odd for Mikey to have no interest in his beloved video games, but Donnie knew what was on his brother's mind. Out of the four of them Mikey was the hopeless romantic, the most naive, and the most tender hearted. Donnie patted his brother's arm trying to snap him out of his thoughts, “Is Rae still asleep?” Mikey only nodded rubbing his lower lip with his index finger. Donnie tried to think of something to take Mikey's mind off the subject but before he could say anything Mikey turned and looked at his brother with pooling eyes.

“Don?.. Has Rae mentioned any friends to you?”

Don just shook his head

“Any siblings?”

“Three brothers.”

Mikey wiped his eyes, “Damn… two of them are…” Mikey swallowed hard, he couldn't bring himself to say it… Donnie's eyes began to water, his brothers were annoying pests most of the time but he couldn't imagine being without them the way Rae was without hers. Don reached a hand out and rubbed Mikey's shoulder, Mikey looked at his older brother with a smile, grateful that he was able to physically touch his brother instead of a cold piece of stone. Mikey cleared his throat as he looked at the clock on the TV, 7:26, “someone should go wake Rae up, she asked to be up by 7:30” Donnie nodded and patted Mikey's shoulder before standing to make his way to their nests. 

Rae laid in Don's nest completely relaxed she had woke from her nap but her body and eyes were so heavy from exhaustion she didn't move from her place under his blanket. She reflected on her day, making breakfast for the boys, going home to find Gary playing peekaboo in her cabinets, then the cleaners came and the carpenter surprised her and was able to patch the holes in her walls and hang a new sliding door to her balcony. All she had to do was wait for the plaster to dry and she could replace her furniture and sleep in her own place again. The thought of being in her apartment alone made her feel empty. She missed her home and family more than words could tell, she had been so lonely since she moved to the city and this family of mutants seemed to be the only cure for her heartache. The gentle touch of Don's hand on her shoulder pulled her from her thoughts.

Rae's eyes opened slowly as a deep sigh escaped her body, the nap had helped but Donnie could still see the exhaustion in her tear stained face. “How do you feel?” Don whispered, “like hell" Rae groaned as her body popped from stretching. “you look kind of ruff" Donnie said as his eyes danced over the ragged girl. “oh gee… Thanks for the compliment casanova” Rae smirked as she laid on her back arms over her head as she looked up at the tall terrapin. Donnie chuckled lightly, as he looked at her tired blue eyes they were full of memories, love, heartbreak and unwavering faith. He wanted to know everything they had ever seen, every laugh that made them sparkle, and every tear they had cried.

“Rae?”

“Hmmm”

“Do you have time for a walk before work?”

“I suppose…”

She took his hand as she slid out of the nest, then made her way to the bathroom to wash her streaked mascara from her face.

Donnie and Rae walked down one of the many sewer tunnels. She swung her arms loosely as her hips swayed, her tension from earlier was gone and she strolled down the tunnel looking at how the few stray rays of light danced on the walls. Donnie on the other hand kept his eyes on his feet trying to decide what to say, ‘well you got her out here, I guess this counts as a date, what next? Say something!’

Rae was so focused on a particular splash of light she didn't see the chunk of concrete in her path, she stumbled over it and fell forward. Donnie's ninja speed kicked in and he effortlessly slipped a hand around her stopping her decent. Rae opened her eyes to see him standing over her one hand on her lower back. Her eyes quickly grazed over his body, her hands wandered to his arms they were firm and sculpted like the rest of his body. She tried to shake the sudden rush of arousal that ran through her body, she squeezed his arms, “my hero" she grinned. Donnie grinned back as he pulled her to her feet, she looked up at him, ‘say something or kiss him!’ 

“So…. What did you want to do"

Don looked down to see her hands resting in his, he swallowed the butterflies that flitted in his throat.

“Well I… I was wondering if you would tell me about yourself.” 

Rae pursed her lips, she knew he would eventually ask but she was emotionally spent, she wasn't sure if she wanted to revisit old memories at the moment. Then again he did just save her from busting her face on the concrete. She turned and they continued their walk down the damp tunnel. 

“what do you want to know?”

Where are you from?

The Carolinas 

North or South?

“Both, our land runs right across the border”

Don swallowed hard as he prepared his next question.

“Can I ask about your family?”

Rae sighed trying to maintain her composure.

“Well… I have an older brother and two younger brothers, a mom and dad.” 

Donnie silently waited to see if she would continue, Rae glanced at him his eyes were gentle, he genuinely wanted to know.

“My oldest brother Joe joined the army the day he graduated high school, he came home 8 months later in a box with a flag draped across the top… I thought it would kill my Daddy.” 

Donnie looked at the girl, she kept her eyes on the ground as they walked on.

“My younger brother Nicolas was born 9 weeks early, he never made it home from the hospital.”

“And Momma…” Rae chuckled at her memory “Momma was tough, she raised me and my brothers, kept us and Daddy alive somehow on the ranch and made the Best blueberry cobbler.” 

She stopped and turned to Donnie but her eyes remained low as she recalled her memories.

“She was the rock that we all clung to, even after burying two sons she was the one that held it all together for the rest of us.” 

Rae bit her lip as she forced herself to continue. Her voice began to quiver.

“She was so busy taking care of us she didn't look after herself… by the time they found her cancer it was too late… She was gone 18 days later.”

Rae looked up at Donnie's amber eyes, she blinked the tears from her own and forced a halfhearted smile. Donnie's heart broke for the girl and her family, he wanted to take the pain from her but he knew he never could.

“Rae I'm sorry”

“Don't be”

Rae let out a deep exhale as she wiped the tears from her eyes, she looked back up at Donnie and smiled determined to shake her sadness.

“Well… Now… My turn"

Donnie pushed his glasses up his snout as he wondered what the girl had up her sleeve. Rae thought for a moment, wanting desperately to lighten the air between them.

“Favorite kind of pizza?”

Donnie smirked, “Hawaiin"

Rae scrunched her face in disapproval, “I assume new york style crust?”

“is there any other?”

“Mmmmm… Chicago style with mushrooms, onions and sausage”

“Chicago style? Why that’s blasphemy!”

Rae’s laugh echoed off the tunnel walls, Donnies smile stretched across his face, he was happy to hear the girl's laughter. Rae continued to ask silly questions, only to be met with Donnie's witty answers, the tunnel began to echo with their giggles.

Splinter’s ears twitched as he heard the two making their way back to the lair, a warm smile spread across his face. Splinter quickly made his way into the living room, “come my sons I have a… chore for each of you.” Leo and Raph followed obediently while Mikey lagged behind whining. 

Their questions had turned into fun childhood stories as they made their way into the lair.

“The next thing I knew, the fool had jumped out of the hay loft and landed in the water trough… when he came up for air he looked at my girl Delta, and said ‘now ain't that worth a kiss?’”

Donnie held a hand over his face trying to muffle the snort that snuck out, Rae bumped against his arm as she giggled at his cute little quirk. The two came to rest in the wreck room, Rae kicked the various objects out of her way as she made her way through the mess, lost in her happy memories she stepped on a stray skateboard part and lost her balance, her arms flew to the side as she tried to regain her balance. Her hand found Donnie's and once she had righted herself she discovered she was once again standing with both her hands resting in his. Rae blushed as she looked up at him, it had been a long time since someone had made her feel so giddy. She swallowed the butterflies that crept up her throat as she looked into his eyes.   
Donnie studied the girl, and reflected on what he had just learned about her. She was no longer a mystery for him to solve but a treasure at the end of an adventure he couldn't wait to begin. In that moment his focus shifted from could these emotions be real to how real they were and what he needed to do to maintain them, to nurture them. His fear of rejection disappeared and was replaced with a sense of focus like he had never had, he wanted to study the girl to learn every movement, what made her laugh what made her cry, what caused her pain and how to eliminate it. 

“Donnie gear up we got a hit” Leo's voice snatched them both from their thoughts, Donnie only responded with a nod, sending Leo to round up Mikey and Raph. Don looked back down at Rae who was admiring the difference between her hands and his, his fingers wrapped around her tiny hands as he pulled them into his chest, he sighed disappointed that their time had to end so suddenly, “I have to go.” Rae raised her eyes and smiled, “I know… Be careful.” Her saddened tone conveyed her disappointment clearly. Donnie squeezed her hands, taking the opportunity to memorize exactly how they felt in his, before stepping around her and jogging to find his brothers. “Wait! How am I going to get to work?” Donnie turned jogging backwards as he called back to her, “I'll get Casey to pick you up.” “Who's Casey?” But he was too far away to hear her. Rae looked at the clock on the wall, 8:30 time to get ready.


	18. Chapter 18

April scrolled on her phone as she road with her boyfriend Casey, they were headed to the turtles' lair to complete a favor Donnie had asked of them. Casey shifted gears as the light turned from red to green, “So who is this girl?” 

“I'm not sure, some chick they saved from the foot… Their's something sketchy about her though, I can't quite put my finger on it.” April kept her eyes on her phone’s screen, she was looking for information.

“Well Donnie seems to have a thing for the girl, he was…”

“An overprotective ass on the phone."

Casey shrugged, “I was going to say precise… Do you know her name.”

“Rae Black"

Casey could feel the color drain from his face, he tried to keep it together, “Rae Lynn Black?”

April looked up from her phone for the first time since she had gotten in the car, her voice was sharp, “You know her?”

Casey swallowed hard, “Uhhhh… Yeah, we uhhh, had a thing back in the day.” 

April's eyes narrowed, “A thing? What's a thing?”

“You know… starts out as friends and then turns into a thing.”

“You fucked her! Oh my God!”

Casey pursed his lips, not sure if he should say anything else or just keep his mouth shut, he opted for the latter. The couple remained silent as they made their way through the city, April's attention was focused on her phone and Casey concentrated on the heavy city traffic. “Ah Ha! I knew it!” April exclaimed, causing Casey to knock the car out of gear as he was in mid shift. 

“What?” 

“According to this article, Sachs fortune and business empire was left to a sole individual after his death following the 2014 apprehension of Shredder. Sachs young wife inherited more than 41.2 billion in assets alone, making her the second richest woman in the state of New York, and one of the top 10 richest women in the world.” 

“So?”

“Sachs widow refused to give an interview, however sources speculate their marriage to be brief as there is no mention of her before his death.”

April skimmed the text for a moment before continuing, “it has been announced, only six months after the unexpected death of Eric Sachs, the Sachs brand will be replaced with DeltaRae. Which is a combination of Sachs widow, RaeLynn, and her new business partner’s, Delta Dawn, first names.”  
Casey pulled into the open alley, he cut off the rumbling engine to his GTO, before falling back into his seat in disbelief. “So she did… Damn Rae.” He mumbled to himself. April cocked an eyebrow, “something I should know?” Casey was propped on his door rubbing his chin in thought, he decided April needed to hear the whole story before she got her facts mixed up.

“Remember I told you I used to play base for that little club outside of Brooklyn?” April nodded as she listened closely.

“Well the place was going under we couldn't find a decent act to bring people in the door. Any way, we had an open mic night me and the boys were back up incase there wasn't anyone who wanted to go on stage… It was the usual round of bad comedians, and drunk singers. It was shit as always.” A smile slipped across Casey's face.

“Just as we were getting ready to hit the stage a tall, skinny girl with a head full of curly hair came up and asked if she could sing with the band… I thought she was just another drunk, but she picked a song we knew pretty well and she got behind the mic.” Casey turned and looked April dead in the face, “Babe, when she opened her mouth I almost dropped the damn guitar, she worked that stage till she had everyone in that place wrapped around her pinky… and it only took her about 3 and half minutes.” April scoffed in disbelief, “you think I'm kidding Babe, I'm fucking serious… The bossman offered her a job on the spot… 14 Months later I bought my first new car with cash, that’s how fast she turned that place around.” 

April narrowed her eyes still in disbelief, “So how did she get involved with Sachs?”

Casey shook his head as a confused expression fell across his face, “She was a student at the time, she's crazy smart too almost Donnie smart, anyway, Sachs was a regular at the club once we moved to a higher end part of the city, and he did a speech or something at her university and he recognized her. All I know is that they hit it off pretty well and he offered to pay for her education, a few months later she quit the club and went to work for him as a bio engineer of some kind.”  
April sighed as she shook her head, she didn't think Casey would lie to her but the story didn't seem to add up. Casey watched as she turned the bezel on the watch Donnie had given her as a Birthday gift some years ago, his car rattled as the wall and dumpster in front of them separated revealing the entry into the turtle's lair. Casey turned the engine over, pushed the clutch in and put the car in gear, the tires squealed as they spun on the damp asphalt. 

Rae stood in the bathroom cussing as she fought with her hair and her dress zipper. She heard a knock at the door and froze hoping it wasn't Raph back early and in need of the facilities again, “Rae are you ready? Me and Casey are here to take you to work?” Rae relaxed as she recognized April's voice, Rae pulled her dress up so she wouldn't trip and opened the door peaking out to make sure April was the only one around. “I need a favor.” She whispered to April who seemed suspicious of Rae's peculiar behavior. Rae opened the door and turned to show April her situation, “Damn Rae how did you manage that?” Rae sighed in frustration as she shook her head, she was in the process of zipping her dress when her hair had become tangled in the zipper, it was quite a mess, and to make things more uncomfortable the dress was completely backless meaning the top of the zipper was only inches always from Rae's intergluteal cleft. April stepped into the bathroom and pushed the door shut, she pulled Rae to the toilet where April sat down to work on the issue, after a out 30 minutes they heard a knock at the door, “What are you guys doing in…” Mikey froze as he heard Rae moan, “Damnit April! Don't be so rough!” Mikey swallowed hard as he turned to look Casey who stood wide eyed behind him. Mikey turned the door knob and eased the door open, just as he was peaking in he was met by April's shouting and waving hand, “Damnit Mikey shut the door Rae's naked!” Mikey snatched the door shut and turned with wide eyes and cheeks that were fire engine red. Casey held his hands out, “Dude! What's going on?” He thought for a moment and then bolted past Casey, Mikey skidded to a halt in the kitchen where Leo, Raph and Donnie stood discussing their recent encounter with the foot. 

Mikey panted for breath as he placed a hand on Donnie's shell, “Dude! Brah!” Casey slid into the kitchen almost falling over a chair left pulled away from the table, “What the fucks going on Mikey?” Casey demanded. “Dudes, I opened the door to check on the girls and I… I saw…” A grin began to spread across Mikey's face as he realized what he may have seen, “I saw April she was on her knees behind Rae, with her hand on… well uhhh…” “MIKEY!!!” the other four snapped, “ok, ok, ok… Rae was NAKED!” Mikey looked at Casey and at Donnie shaking his head, “Dudes I think your girls aren't into you anymore… Cause they're totally into each other" Mikey grabbed his chest as he leaned against the counter, “Oh Boy… That is soooo freaking hot!”

The three turtles and Casey exchanged glances of disbelief before Leo spoke up, “Are you sure that's what you saw Mikey" But before Mikey could answer April came storming down the hall from the bathroom, she didn't acknowledge the boys standing in the kitchen as she began to rummage through the drawers. She pulled a pair of scissors from a drawer and then shoved them in Donnie's face, “You best be glad I like you Donatello, cause your girlfriend is a pain in the ass.” She snapped tartly before heading back down the hall with the scissors in hand. Donnie raised a brow, “girlfriend?”

The five boys waited in the hall outside the bathroom door, they were almost on top of one another as they listened to the commotion on the other side. 

“Damnit Rae Hold Still”

“No don't touch it!”

Silence….

Rae gasped loudly, “You Hussey!”

“Oh shut up and put some clothes on!”

The boys looked at each other wide eyed as they tried to piece together what they had just heard, Mikey snickered as he whispered, “I told you guys their in there fucking!” Donnie thumped Mikey on the head, “Mikey that's completely ridiculous” he snapped. “Dude! You just heard it what did it sound like?” Donnie just shook his head refusing to admit that the conversation could be considered riskay at the least. The doorknob began to turn and in a fit of panic the five boys wound up in a tangled pile of turtles and poor skinny Casey. They managed to get to their feet and appear somewhat composed by the time April opened the door. 

April looked a ravaged mess, she flipped her hair out of her face and made her way down the hall not paying the line of boys any mind. “Jesus April shut the door!” Rae shouted just before slamming the bathroom door. “Must have been rough.” “Shut up Casey" Donnie spat as he followed April into the kitchen the others filing in close behind. 

They found April standing at the sink washing the blades of the scissors before drying, and tossing them back in the drawer. Leo held his hands out, “What was that all about?” April crossed her arms and leaned against the counter, “She got that mane of hers stuck in the dress zipper, I had to cut her hair to get it loose.” Their eyes widened, they all knew Rae loved her curls, “How much did you cut?” Donnie inquired. April shrugged and pointed at the mess of blonde curls laying in the trashcan, “Duuuude, it looks like a cat laying in there...” Just then they heard the bathroom door slam against the wall, “Shit! She's pissed." Casey whispered as he quickly made his way to the living room, hopping over the back of the couch. He motioned for the others to join him and all obliged except April and Donnie. 

Rae blew into the kitchen, her evening gown had been exchanged for a pair of denim shorts and a baggy tshirt, her hair twisted up in a messy bun in an attempt to hide the chunk of hair April had cut out. Rae snapped at April, but April held her ground, Donnie had initially stayed to play referee but after seeing the ferocity of the two women he decided to quietly ease over to the couch and take on the roll of spectator instead. At first they argued about April cutting too much of Rae's hair then the subject quickly changed.

“Oh quit whining you rich bitch, just go have it fixed God knows you've got the money!”  
What?

Oh com'on, your nothing but a gold digger, you'd fuck anyone for a buck.

What the fuck are you talking about?

Oh don't play dumb, I know you're Sachs' poor little widow.

Rae's mouth fell open, she couldn't believe April had tossed out such a fact in front of. The brothers. Rae knew if they found out they wouldn't have anything else to do with her, and she couldn't imagine being in the city with out them. Rae clenched her fists as her temper boiled and her emotions became overwhelming, her eyes began to water, she had to get away before she lost control. The lights flickered and then went out, Donnie reached for his goggles to utilize their night vision, but before he could pull them over his eyes their was a blinding flash and a loud crack as if a power grid had blown. 

“Is everyone ok?” Leo's voice rang out in the darkness, followed by an echo of confirmation from everyone, except one. Donnie had made his way to the fuse box closest to them, he adjusted his goggles making sure they were focused, the box was completely blown the old glass fuses he had used were busted and scattered On the floor and the metal box was so hot it had begun to melt. 

Splinter came into the kitchen carrying a candle, after asking if everyone was alright he turned his attention to Donatello, “My son can you fix this?” Donnie shook his head, “The damage is pretty extensive, its going to take some time.” Raph approached his younger brother looking over his shoulder at the remnants of the fuse box, “What do you think caused it Don?” Donnie shrugged, “it looks like a massive power serge, it overloaded the breakers and melted the box.” 

April helped Splinter round up candles and light them through out the lair, soon the darkness had succumb to the dim flickering of candle light. Donnie and Mikey had managed to find a dozen or so working flashlights which Donnie used to assess the extent of the electrical damage. As Donnie moved through the lair he found that the other fuse boxes were intact and unharmed, ‘Odd, a serge that intense should have taken out multiple boxes' he thought to himself; but with a little rewiring he had the power back on in the rest of the lair with in an hour. He rolled several possibilities through his mind, as he finished up the last rewire, trying to pinpoint a cause for the major damage to one particular box and not the others, but none made since. 

Raph lumbered into the room kicking various items out of his way, “Hey guys, has anyone seen Rae?”. When no one answered Donnie began to worry, he could tell she was upset and thought she had taken advantage of the blackout to find a quiet spot and cool down. Mikey jogged into the wreck room where everyone else was congregated, “Her bag is gone, she's not here!” All eyes landed on April who held her hands out defensively, “What!?” Casey shook his head, “Babe you were a little ruthless.” April folded her arms and popped a hip out, “Its all true, looks to me she was playing you guys. She's got the money why don't she hire a body guard? Besides how do you know she's not working for Shredder? You can't possibly think that she doesn't know about him after being married to Sachs. She's probably headed back to report the location of the lair.”   
Leo's heart sank as he realized he may have let Shredder in through the front door by offering refuge to the girl. His eyes darted to Donnie, but Donnie's was expressionless as his mind reeled over April's claims and the girl he had become so fond of. Leo's voice was firm, “Donnie you've got to find her, we need some answers.” Donnie nodded and made his way to the lab to gather his gear, while Leo and Splinter discussed where the rest could hide incase there was an attack on the lair, while everyone was focused on the developing plan Casey slipped into the lab.

“Hey Don.”

“What Casey, I'm in a hurry” Donnie snapped as he hooked his backpack to his suspenders.

Casey rubbed the back of his neck contemplating his words, “There's something you should know about Rae.”

Donnie stood silent waiting on Casey to continue.  
“Long story short, I used to work with Rae at a little club. After she met Sachs she changed, she wasn't herself she was quiet, like… like she was trying to keep a secret.” Casey Looked at the tall genius, he listening intently picking at every word Casey spoke. “ Have you ever seen a victim of domestic violence? How they act? That’s how Rae was when you looked at her, her eyes were screaming for help but she played it so cool.” Donnies heart pounded at the thought of Sachs, or anyone, laying a hand on Rae. “Before she quit the club some weird things began to happen, amps started blowing out, and the lights would explode for no reason, but it only happened when Rae was around.” Casey pressed on trying to give Donnie every piece he could, “Remember seeing the story on the news about the Sachs estate last year, it went up in flames due to multiple lighting strikes, you said yourself the probability The mansion taking multiple hits so close together was next to zero!... I did some digging a few years ago when I made detective, you know the coroner's exam showed Sachs wasn't killed by that blow to the head? He died of fibrillation of the heart.”  
Donnie's mouth fell open, “He was electrocuted.” He whispered in realization.

Casey leaned against a table, “Look man, Rae's a good girl but I think she's been through some rough shit, be careful… She may be more dangerous then you think.”   
Donnie nodded in appreciation, and added a few more items in his pockets before heading for the nearest manhole. 

Rae tried to navigate the city’s power grid but it had been so long it all seemed like a blur. Some how she managed to make it to her building but over shot her apartment, she burst through a security light on the roof. Rae tried to land on her feet but the force knocked her off balance causing her to land on her right side, her denim shorts and loose shirt provided little barrier between her skin and the unforgiving concrete as she slid across the rooftop. Finally at a stop she winced as she rolled over to her back, her right side stung from her knee all the way up to her bra line, she rubbed her fingers along her side the warm moisture beneath them confirmed she was bleeding. She groaned as she heaved herself to her feet, her hair hand come untied and hung around her shoulders as she made her way to the edge of the building holding her raw side. She peered over the ledge, and swallowed the lump of fear in her throat, “shit fire, why is everything so high in this city?” she mumbled as she took in a breath of courage and slung her leg over the ledge and onto the fire escape ladder.

By the time she made it to her apartment window the effects of her small electrical explosion had began to set in. Her body slumped against the glass, in a hot sweaty mess, she used what little power she had left to turn the metal lock on the window, she hauled the window open a rolled into the floor. She laid there for a moment trying to regain her composure, she was hot! It was normal for her to feel drained and have intense hot flashes after using her powers but she didn't remember them being this extreme. Of course she hadn't used them since Sachs died, she had hoped they had faded away, apparently she was terribly wrong. She lay in her bedroom floor panting as she could feel her body temperature rising, her heavy sweating made her clothes stick to her body, she had to get up and try to get it together. 

Donnie stopped once he had made it to a near by roof top. He thought for a moment, there's only one place she could go, he headed east toward her apartment building hoping he was right. He wondered what he would find, if he found her at all. 

Don could see the open window as he landed on the building across the street, he used his watch for a quick scan of the apartment. No sign of a high electrical concentration, he pulled his goggles down, his thermal scanner detected a mass of heat in the form of a human located in the kitchen, he dialed in. It had to be her, but the scanner showed a body heat of 214.76, the figure laid motionless on the floor. Once again his logic was overridden and his since of caution was thrown to the wind as he quickly swung into the open window and headed for the girl.

Rae thought she heard something but she was completely spent, her body was heavy with exhaustion, she looked around for something to defend herself if necessary.

Donnie swiftly made his way through her bedroom and into the living room doing his best to step around the little gray cat that trotted right in front of his feet. He stopped for a second surveying the apartment, his eyes instantly landed on the thin trail of blood leading to the kitchen, he swallowed hard “Ra…” He ducked as something whirled past his head. He turned to see a steak knife wedged in the ceiling behind him. He heard a breathy sigh, “oh… Damn it Donnie, you scared me to death.” He turned to see a ragged girl peering over the bar top, he moved quickly as she began to slide back, slipping an arm under her shoulders just before she hit the hard tile floor. 

She was drenched in sweat and her body was screaming hot, he quickly but gently laid her on the floor as he could feel his scales began to scorch under her heat. She struggled to raise herself and nodded toward the refrigerator which stood wide open with the shelves pulled out into the floor, he helped her slide back against the cold interior, she sighed in relief. His stomach churned as he watched her body heave with every breath, her hair laid wet around her shoulders, and her skin even though it was blazing hot glistened with a heart wrenching paleness. 

Rae smiled and patted his hand, “Its alright Hun, I'll cool off eventually.” Donnie blinked the sympathy from his eyes, “is there anything I can do?” She just shook her head as her chest fell with a deep exhale, “What's the blood from?” he asked pointing at the smears on the white kitchen tile. Rae rolled her body slightly to reveal the still open wound that ran the length of her right side, “Bad landing, got a touch of road rash.” She breathed with a forced smile. Donnie pulled his backpack from his shell and searched for his first aid kit he stood and laid out what he would need on the bar and turned to wash his hands at the sink, but before he could turn the faucet on he heard the lock turn over on her front door. Don froze, he looked at Rae, “You expecting company?” her eyes just traveled from him to the kitchen entryway, Donnie didn't know whether to hide or stay to see if the intruder was a threat. He held his position, just in case. 

He heard the door slam shut as a short, brunette popped around the corner, she paid him little mind as she hurried around him to find Rae sprawled out in the fridge. “Damn girl you look like shit.” A faint grin pulled at the blondes lips, “Hey D,” she breathed. Donnie watched as the girl knelt and laid a hand on Rae's knee, she hissed as Rae's skin made hers sizzle. The girl, stood and looked the place over finally landing on Donnie, she squinted as she studied him for a minute, “Your not nearly as ugly as I thought you'd be.” Her plain matter of fact tone, surprised Donnie as she spoke to him like he was another human. His face twisted in uncertainty, “Uhhh… Thanks, I think?” The girl grinned and folded her arms, “Delta… Rae's told me a lot about you.” “Did she say I was that hideous?” The brunette chuckled, “Oh no, quite the oppos…” She stumbled as Rae weakly kicked at the backs of her knees, she cleared her throat, “So… What happened? How long has she been like this?” Donnie looked back at the distressed girl, his expression fell as his heart ached for her, “20 minutes maybe.” Delta shook her head, “I thought we were done with this, apparently its resurfaced.” Donnie's mind reeled with questions, but his main priority was finding some way to relieve Rae of her pain. “Is there anything we can do?” Delta sighed as she shook her head, “Not really, an ice bath usually helps cool her off but she's too hot to move.” Donnie perked up, “I can carry her to the bathtub.” Delta scoffed, “Have you felt her? She'll burn you alive before you get across the living room.” Donnie smiled and patted his palstron, “fire proof" “what about your arms?” Donnie went back to his backpack and pulled out two long heat resistant gloves. Delta nodded her head in approval and picked up the phone, calling the Mr. Huddley to request a few bags of ice and then heading to the bathroom to fill the tub. 

Donnie waited until Delta gave him the go ahead before he put his hands on Rae. He tried to hold her away from his body, but he could still feel the heat through his thick plastron and gloves. The steam rolled out into his face as her body met the water, causing him to drop her the rest of the way into the tub. He reached down to help her sit up but Delta stopped him, “she'll be fine, don't scald yourself.” 

Delta and Donnie both found a simi comfortable place to sit on the bathroom floor, Donnie leaving every so often to retrieve a bag of ice from the freezer and call to update his brothers. He touched Rae's face as he finished emptying the last bag of ice into the tub, “She's cool, should we move her.” Delta nodded, “she needs to go to bed and get some rest, but looks like Karai tore that up too, and my place is on the other side of the city.” Donnie could see the concern in Delta's face, “Well… she's been staying with us, in the sewers, I'd like to take her back where I… my brothers and I can protect her from the foot.” Delta twisted her face at the thought, but she recalled one of her many texts from Rae over the past few days, and his story matched hers. “OK but I'm going with.” Her tone was firm and unwavering, Donnie pursed his lips and nodded in defeat, ‘Leo's going to kill me.’


End file.
